


siniy

by vaindaisy



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-22
Updated: 2016-12-10
Packaged: 2018-05-22 14:40:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 22,976
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6083175
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vaindaisy/pseuds/vaindaisy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She doesn't consider herself part of the Avengers, but that doesn't stop SHIELD from throwing her into battle. With no superpowers, Cora Gonzalez is just another SHIELD Agent who's trying her best to not melt into the Cap's blue eyes. But then came Pietro. Slight AU. Pietro/OC. Slight Steve/OC beginning.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. cora

"You're joking, right?"

"Jem, do I  _look_  like I would joke about that?"

   
"Well no," Jemma bit her lip in thought before continuing, "but Venezuela?"  
   
"Venezuela is a different story," Cora quickly responded with a shiver running down her spine, and finally looking up at the biochemist from the microscope. The lab was quiet that night, and the brunette took that advantage to go visit her best friend. Some were out on missions, others on their time off, and she was sure that a group of them had gone to a bar downtown to celebrate a holiday. Cora wasn't sure which one, but she would bet her last dollar that it was a cheap excuse to get co-workers drunk on tequila. "I'm being serious when I say that this dude had orange blood and his cells were creating other cells," Cora continued, stepping away so Jemma could take a look.  
   
"That's something that cells do, period," the British one rolled her eyes as she looked at the microscope.  
   
"But not right in front of your eyes," she exclaimed, arms in the air. "I cut his arm off, he was bleeding orange and then his arm just grew  _again_  in a ma-"  
   
She stopped the moment Fitz walked in, and he only glanced at both women before shaking his head. "Venezuela?"  
   
Loudly groaning, Cora kicked the chair lightly before sitting on it. Fitz smirked, knowing that he'd been right and dropped off a bag of fast food in front of Jemma.  
   
"Thanks for the food," Cora murmured sarcastically, crossing her arms. She didn't particularly liked Fitz, but she kept mostly mum for the sake of her best friend. Jem looked up from the microscope, into the bag of food, thanked Fitz and began eating the fries.  
   
"I was hoping you'd take the hint and go home," Fitz said, earning a slap in the arm from Jemma.  
   
"But really Cora, maybe you should go home and sleep," Jem then suggested with a worried tone. "When's the last time you've been home, five days? A week, tops?"  
   
Shrugging her arms casually, she sat still with square shoulders. "Just a couple of weeks," she said offhandedly, looking around the lab to avoid eye contact.  
   
Glaring straight at her, Cora could just feel Jemma's glare, which prompted Cora to sigh while she stood from the chair. God, she wanted to punch Fitz for even bringing it up.  
   
"Have you been having that dream again?" Jemma asked, furrowing her eyebrows while fixating her stare at Cora.  _Yes_ , should have been the response Cora would have given if Fitz hadn't been there. Instead, she gave a slight nod and waved goodbye as she exited the lab. She needed to do this before Jemma could even begin a lengthy lecture about how much Cora had been overworking herself.  
   
She wasn't going to return to her apartment, just far from the lab where Jem would assume she had left. The apartment wasn't home. It felt empty to her. Home was back in Chicago with her family, as they blared  _corridos_  and  _norteño_  music loudly from the backyard as the weekly family reunion commenced. The dreams weren't terrible once, it wasn't the reason she wouldn't go home, but they just made her  _feel_  weird. Sighing, she'd rather not focus on that.  
   
Besides, every time she opted to leave HQ, she was called for duty. After the Battle of New York, she had suggested to Fury offhandedly that HQ should be moved to Chicago. His response was to stare at her for a minute straight, without saying a word before he walked away.  
   
Walking down the corridor, she recalled the battle with Loki and those creepy aliens. She had been assigned to helping Captain America on the ground, making sure civilians were evacuated and transported to safety, all while taking out the chitauri with her naginata.  
   
It was certainly good that she was able to focus during the battle with Steve Rogers around. Ever since she could remember, she had been a sucker for blue eyes. Knowing herself, Cora was sure had she not been so caught up in the moment, she would have stuttered over her words.  
   
Still, she has never considered herself to be part of the Avengers Initiative. She worked with other teams, not just them; additionally, she didn't have any super powers and definitely did not feel as skilled as Romanoff and Barton. But Fury decided to throw her in last minute.  
   
That man worked in mysterious ways, but it sure seemed like he knew exactly what he was doing.  
   
She had been working in Morocco at the time being, where had been working on finding files regarding some past HYDRA agents. Maria Hill had contacted her, announcing that she'd be picked up in an hour. She was briefed on the airplane, and that's where she had met Jemma Simmons for the first time too. The young biochemist has equipped her with a state-of-the-art naginata, a weapon of choice since she began her martial arts training decades ago.  
   
_Agent Gonzalez, report to main deck. Agent Gonzalez, main deck._  
   
"Called it," she muttered, sprinting towards the main deck. At least she didn't have to go to her apartment.

* * *

 

   
Successfully managing to find a suitable dress for the occasion, Cora leaned against the elevator wall on the Avenger's Tower. She shifted her weight between her right and left leg as she waited, feeling the shoes digging into her heels. She could deal with tight leather bodysuits and skirts, but dresses weren't always her forte. There wasn't really much of a difference, Cora was well aware of that, it was just preference.  
   
It was a flattering blue lace dress that fit her figure just right, ending a few inches above her knee.  
   
She would never say this out loud but one of the reason she loved the dress was because it made her look like she had bigger boobs.  
   
Tapping her foot against the floor impatiently, she could only stay about an hour. She would've opted to not come at all, but Tony had  _oh-so-graciously_ called her to remind her.  
   
SHIELD had gathered intel on a growing group of HYDRA agents stationed near the Ukrainian-Russian border. Cora wouldn't be traveling alone as she'd be accompanying Coulson's Team. The brunette was never fond of Jemma being part of field missions, even if she stayed inside the ship the entire time. It wasn't her choice though, so Cora would teach Jemma self-defense moves.  
   
" _Mi Corazon!"_  she heard the billionaire yell elatedly from across the room in her native language the moment the elevator doors slid open. Cora visibly cringed at unwanted attention and the use of her full name. She wasn't fond of it.  
   
Ignoring Tony Stark's audacious greeting, she went straight to the open bar. Ordering herself a cherry vodka sour, she took a seat. Not far to her right, Natasha was palying bartender, and Cora made a mental note to not go anywhere near the vicinity of the Russian. She knew the redhead for being heavy handed with alcohol when mixing drinks. She waved pleasantly, and nodded in acknowledgment towards Dr. Banner. The two of them returned to their own conversation, and curiously looked at them from her peripheral vision as she received her drink. Whatever  _that_  was... she was not on board. She wasn't liking the looks they were giving each other.  
   
" _Mi Corazon me duele_!" Stark's announced with a large grin on his face, ordering himself another whisky.  
   
"That's never been cute," Cora replied with glare, drinking from the glass. "And I've been telling you that since the very beginning."  
   
She could never deny that Tony was funny in his own, strange way. But she hated her full name, and his accent on it wasn't something she particularly liked either. Tony knew this, but being him, kept doing it on occasion.  
   
"Glad you could make it," he said before finishing his whisky. Before he could place the glass down, it had been replaced with the one he had ordered moments ago. "Although I did have convince you just a bit, I'm sure you're only here to see your one true love."  
   
Cora scowled, elbowing Tony hard. She highly resented Stark's ability to sniff that kind of information with a glance. He had asked her point blank in front of a few people, without caring, if she'd like to 'do the dirty' with Steve Rogers. She had only stuttered a  _no_  with fiery cheeks before walking away.  
Luckily, Steve hadn't been there. But the endless teasing now came from Clint, Sam, and Thor whenever he was around. Natasha had voiced her disapproval of it, but would stop the squabble whenever Steve was around.  
   
"I think I saw him having a drink with Thor over there," Tony smirked, pointing over to Steve Rogers and the unmissable Nordic God.  
   
"I'm not  _in love_  with him," Cora finally said, a bit too late as her cheeks heated up. She was just  _endlessly_ attracted to him. It had nothing to do with love.  
   
Standing up, Tony placed his arm around Cora's shoulders and unwillingly guided her over to the superheroes that conversed with a few veterans. She brushed off Tony's arm from her when they arrived, smiling kindly at the vets as she waved. One of them reminded her of her deceased grandfather. She hadn't actually met him but she'd seen the photos.  
   
"Lady Corazon!" Thor's voice thundered jovially with a great grin, engulfing the shorter woman in a hug. Her feet were no longer on the floor, and Cora really didn't appreciate that he made her feel tiny and dainty.  
   
"Hey Thor," she greeted when he finally let her down, albeit the dread in her voice when he used her full name. Either he hadn't grasped the concept of nicknames or he plainly didn't listen to her, Cora always let it slide that he used her full name.  
   
Turning over to Cora, Steve had a friendly smile on his face. The brunette blushed, feeling the room getting hotter as seconds went by.  
   
"You look beautiful Cora," Steve complimented.  
   
_This is how I die,_  she thought to herself. She returned his smile and forgot to thank him, a hand on her waist so she could at least hold herself. At least she had been able to convince him to use her nickname.  
   
"I'm glad you could make it," he said, oblivious to her current situation of wanting to melt into a puddle. "Nat said you weren't sure if you would be coming, you were out doing a mission, right?"  
   
She shook her head and managed to formulate words without sounding idiotic, "I actually leave tonight." He placed a hand on her bare arm, looking at her with furrowed eyebrows. Tony had apparently played his disappearance act since he was nowhere to be seen.  
   
"Are you okay?"  
   
_Oh god, I'm going to throw up_ , she said, scolding herself immediately for sounding like a fangirl. This was her co-worker for Christ's sake. She nodded and responded with a yes, but felt the disappointment creep over her when his hands left her skin. She was embarrassed that she couldn't function around Steve Rogers like an actual human being.  
   
"You haven't stopped by the tower in a while, how have you been?"  
   
"Good, working mostly," was Cora's response, surprised that Steve had noticed her lack of appearances around the tower. The teasing, despite it being claimed as "good natured" was the reason she hadn't stopped by but the response was the best she could do without giving him the correct reason.  
   
"Captain, this your lady?" One of the Vets asked with a smirk on his lips as he pointed between the two. Cora could only shake her head while Steve responded for both of them.  
   
"Ah, no," Steve easily said with an embarrassed smile. "No, she's a friend. I'm sure you've seen of her, she was in the Battle of New York with us. She's a brave one, helped save hundreds of lives."  
   
Cora began to protest while one of them raised his eyebrow at her, mouth agape. "You're a tiny little thing though, thank you for saving our country." She had begun by feeling offended, assuming that his sentence was going to end in a derogatory way. A bright smile onto her lips, she thanked him. It wasn't everyday that she was given credit for her job, so little things like these made her day. It only made it better when she actually realized that Steve made it happen.  
   
At least she hadn't bee shoved into the limelight like Banner, Thor and Steve. Cora wouldn't even consider Tony on that list, seeing as he outed himself.  
   
"I'll be out of your hair," she announced, stepping away from the men who reminisced about wars she hadn't been planned for. She was no hero; this was just a job that she really enjoyed. Steve tried to convince her to stay for a bit longer, but Cora could only shake her head. She spotted Maria and Clint talking by the windows, and the young woman made her way towards them. She could feel her cheeks were finally cool down from the short interaction with Steve.  
   
"Cora," Clint greeted, hugging her in a warm welcome.  
   
"How's normalcy?" Cora teased Maria, "Better yet, how's working for Stark?"  
   
Clint laughed; knowing that working with or for Stark could be unbearable.  
   
"I don't know  _Corazon_ ," Maria mimicked with a smirk, watching the other woman frown visibly at the following words, "Have you told Steve of your undying love for him?"  
   
Cora glared and crossed her arms, "Okay, that's not as funny."  
   
Still laughing, Clint gave a slight shrug in agreement with Maria. Cora rolled her eyes, quickly vying the conversation into a different direction.  
   
Maria Hill wasn't much older than her, possibly by a few years. Both had been selected by and for SHIELD at the same time, and had entered boot camp together. Maria had just finished her latest tour with the United States forces, and Cora had just been a recent graduate who had been pulled aside during a martial arts tournament. From the very beginning, both women had seen each other as friendly rivals. When they trained and Maria won, Cora would spend nights at the gym. If Cora won, Maria would train harder. At one point, Cora had applied for Maria's position in SHIELD, which ultimately, she did not get.  
   
For the rest of the night, the three caught up. Clint spoke about his time during the tower, asked the obvious question as to why Cora hadn't been stopping by more often. The agent gave her usual excuse of work. Maria talked about how she missed being in action, but being a civilian had its perks too.  
   
Cora couldn't see herself doing that, so she had to applaud Maria's strength. She just knew that if she had been working for Stark, she'd be trying to trash his suits.  
   
Her phone vibrated with the alarm that indicated her time was up. 


	2. ukraine

Dripping in sweat and blood wasn’t something she liked, but the adrenaline gave her the extra boost she needed.

She, along with Coulson’s Team, had been in Ukraine for the past few of days, scoping out the scene and attempting to find more information. Despite being on a team mission, Cora relished being back in Eastern Europe, especially Ukraine. She enjoyed the people and the culture, despite the lingering sense of patriotic communism present in the elder community. Puzata Hata was the place she opted to go first, a Ukrainian food chain that served traditional food. After having her first spoonful of authentic borscht and another of gretchka, Cora sighed happily while Jemma looked at her curiously.

Currently located in Lugansk, a town with a close border to Western Russia, Cora had a Glock 26 in her hands ready to shoot. They were in an abandoned warehouse outside the city limits, and a few Hydra agents had already been encountered and shot at. She barely managed to dodge a kick to her face, but her lip was split open. However, Cora was more worried about the bleeding wound at the top of her right eyebrow. It was bound to leave a scar.

The corridors were eerily quiet as she made her way through them. The blood from the wound reached her jaw as she regulated her breathing from the fight.

“I don’t see anybody. Body heat signals?”

“No signals detected.” Daisy’s voice was tense through the small device in Cora’s ear. Lowering her gun slightly, she followed the agent’s instructions. “Left. Right. Right again,” the young woman instructed. “Eight steps and there’ll be a door on your left, two body signals are detected there.”

She wished she had her naginata instead of a gun. It was easier for her to use, but someone – Melinda – had to go and remind everyone that blood splattered a lot easier with a blade than with a bullet.

“Hacking into the lock system… give me ten more seconds,” Daisy spoke, beginning countdown. “Five, four, three, two… and now it is open.” The audible clunk indicated that Daisy had successfully managed to hack into the system. Cora made no move when it did. Her demeanor remained unchanging at the sound of bullets ricocheting against the large metal door she was next to.

The bullets halted. She took it as queue they were reloading and seized the moment to go in. Just like Daisy had said, only two people stood inside the big empty room. A man and woman, who couldn’t possibly be more than three years younger than her. They were inexperienced, fumbling around at their attempt to reload the gun. It didn’t take her more than ten seconds to shoot both of them in the kneecaps, watching them fall on the floor.

It was always a favorable spot for her. It debilitated people quickly without hitting anything major. Who cared if they ran the chance of never walking again? When they fell, Cora kicked their weapons away from them.

Calling for help to pick the two, Cora knocked out the male by kicking him swiftly in the head. Removing the belt from his waist, she turned him face down and tied his wrists together. The woman cursed at her in Russian while she held her knee, tears rolling down her eyes in agony.

“Zatknis,” Cora snapped, crouching to slap the woman. The Russian woman stopped, eyes glaring at the other with frustration and anger. The brunette was sent on finding the files, but she had to tie the bitch up first.

“You will never find them,” she said in Russian while she was being bound. The woman laughed at her own words, irritating the agent.

Her first instinct was to look through the cabinets. Her fingers skimmed through the empty manila folders in frustration, slamming it angrily as she went to the next section. Nothing. The cackling from the Russian only deepened her annoyance, and for a split second, she wondered if SHIELD had sent her on a pointless mission.

They wouldn’t send her on a pointless mission… right?

The sound of paper crinkling behind her turned her into the redhead’s direction, pupils widening at the realization of what was done. Sparing no time, Cora turned the woman over and raised her blouse.

“Why the fuck aren’t you wearing a bra?” she muttered to herself, finding the manila folder underneath the crinkled and dirty white blouse. It was tied against the Russian’s torso and she was overjoyed she hadn’t shot the woman in the chest. The files would have been drenched in blood.

“Bol'shoye spasibo,” a smug smirk on her lips as she took the files.

“Sooka,” the woman sneered in Russian, spitting in Cora’s face.

Seething, she wiped with her forearm while standing. There was a strong contemplation of whether or not she would untie her; it wouldn’t be a fair fight if one of them were tied up. Instead, she opted to kick her. A strong kick made contact with the woman’s torso and then head, knocking her out. The Russian could call her all the nasty and derogatory names in the world, but never spit in her face.

“Puta.”

There was a desk and chair in the middle of the room, and when she sat, she swung her feet up onto the desk. She heard Coulson’s voice through the earpiece, letting her know that they were just around the corner. Cora’s eyebrows furrowed as she skimmed through the file. They were mostly blank pages, a couple of numbers here and there scattered throughout it, but nothing usable. She sat up and placed the file on the table and tried to piece it together. Was it a cipher?

“Really?” Coulson said exasperatedly when he reached the room, “Their knees again?”

“The files are useless.” Anger emanated through her voice as she stood from her seat and looked at the agents.

“Nothing’s ever useless,” Melinda responded, taking the files from the table. Two agents carried each body, dragging them towards the plane and into the interrogation room. Coulson and Melinda took the male while Daisy and her took the female. Once all Hydra agents were in their designated rooms, Cora left so Melinda could do her job. Her strength and poised attitude had Cora wishing she could have the woman’s traits. Maybe if she convinced Jemma, the scientist could go and create some kind of osmosis pill.

Looking herself in the bathroom mirror, she frowned at the grimy face that reflected. A few rough blows, but nothing major. The gash above her eyebrow was a lot deeper than she originally thought, and the cut on her lip wasn’t that bad. It would hinder her availability to facetime with her family.

Sighing, Cora began by washing her face from the sweat and blood, but stopped when she heard a loud knock. Sliding the door open, Jemma held up a first aid kit with a smile on her face.

“Need any help?” 

xxx

Jemma distracted her with meaningless conversation as she finished dabbing the stitches with hydrogen peroxide. While their conversation on which Real Housewives series was better went on, Fitz had to come around and spoil a book Cora had been reading.

Quickly ushering him out, Jemma reminding Cora that the moment they returned to DC she would be “going straight home for a good ten hours of sleep.” That was a ridiculous idea, knowing she wouldn’t actually listen.

She rested her back against the seat, lights off as she let the adrenaline turn into drowsiness. The lack of sleep had really gotten to her, but she decided against taking a nap. She stood and made her way to the cockpit.

Cora wasn’t sure if she was mad about the lack of information. It was somewhere between the lines of ‘there was nothing in the files’ and ‘I couldn’t figure this out.’ She knew it was best not to be angry. Maybe she could even tak her frustrations out on Maria in a friendly fight? That would probably help her clear her head.

Sitting down in the co-pilot seat, Coulson wasn’t fazed at her entrance.

“How’s the family?” he spoke first, filling in the silence. Twisting her back so it could crack, and she gave a slight shrug.

“Good, I suppose,” was her response. “Estrella turned four last week, and I can’t believe I missed another birthday. She called me crying because I wasn’t there.”

Cora was close to her family, especially her niece. Estrella was like the sun of her sky, brightening up her day after a terrible day at work. Hiding her real occupation for their own safety made her feel guilty on a constant basis. They were all under teh assumption her job was working as a Legislative Director for a senator. It was an obvious lie, but with her major being political science, her family didn’t question it. Letting the conversation fade, both knew that missing big family celbreations came with the job. Coulson didn’t respond, letting the conversation fade, as both very well knew that this type of work came with large sacrifices.

A ringing burst through the silence, startling Cora.

“Is that a phone?” Cora’s eyes grew at the shrill sound, looking at Coulson. He smirked, pressing a green button that brought up Fury’s face on the holographic screen. Her eyes bulged out. Fury was supposed to be dead.

“What the fuck.” She squawked, surprised to see the former SHIELD director. The man in question was annoyed at the reaction. Coulson looked like this was nothing new. She had a plethora of questions for Fury, but before she had the chance to even ask one, he spoke.  
  
“Eloquent as ever Gonzalez,” the sarcastic tone laced with his words halted any attempt of words.

“I need you to land on the following coordinates: 48.045556 North, 20.4727376 East,” Fury instructed, and Coulson followed orders. While in the back of her mind she still considered Fury the Director… nobody really had to listen to him. Right?

“Gonzalez, grab your weapons,” he said, giving her the stink eye. She was about to protest, just wanting to be back in DC for a good sleep. “The Avengers need you.” The transmission went out.

“Do they really?” Cora questioned out loud, Coulson letting her know to hurry up. Her forehead wrinkled in confusion, tying to recover from the sudden appearance of Fury. She took in a deep breath and looked at the pilot. “Don’t land, I’ll jump,” she said, hands gripping the edge of the door. “Did you know h was-?” She couldn’t finish the question but Coulson didn’t answer. “We’re going to have a long talk about this later Philip.”

He only smiled and said they’d be arriving in thirty minutes, steering the jet’s wheel towards the new coordinates. She wasn’t sure why the Avengers would need her, on even as to why; nevertheless, Cora made her way towards the lab. If she was being requested then she really wasn’t in any position to reject. She had to focus.

Daisy, Fitz, and Jemma were all chatting when Cora walked in. Daisy’s greeting died halfway when she noticed the spirit Cora was in.

“Jemma, I need you to get these following items,” she instructed the moment she walked in. “I’ll need my naginata, my usual knife and get a parachute ready for me.

“Fitz, get me some of those electrostatic bolts, maybe shock yourself once or twice, I don’t care, and two Glock 26s with extra ammunition.”

Even in this tense moment, she couldn’t help but hope Fitz hurt himself just slightly. Maybe She’d even spoil the Game Of Thrones books for him.

She was ready to turn on her heel to go change, but looked over at Daisy.

“Look for anything that’s going on around the world relating to the Avengers,” the agent said. “Hack into systems, security cams, flip through the channels, I don’t care, make it happen.”

It’s not that she didn’t trust Daisy, but Cora needed someone to let her know what was going on.

Glad for the extra catsuit on the plane, and she stripped off her old one and put on the clean one. It almost made her feel better, the other one felt gross from the sweat and visible blood stains that weren’t hers. She didn’t bother saying her farewells to Melinda, not wanting to disturb the interrogation.

Back in the lab, Fitz was the first to hand her the guns. She placed one securely on her right thigh holster while the other one went on her waist. Her knife went in the holster on her left thigh. Fitz then helped her put on the bolts onto her wrist, and she attached the extra ammunition to her utility belt.

Jemma helped slide on the parachute backpack, a worried smile on her lips. Turning to the table, the biochemist handed her a naginata. It wasn’t her usual one, confused as her eyebrows knitted together.

It was a beautiful design. It had some traditional naginata attributes. The pole was made out of metal, it’s handle reinforced with fiberglass and nylon, and a small black button near the center, where she usually held it. The blade at the very end caught her attention. It was about 24-inches of stainless steel. A quarter-sized hole was near the base of the blade, and a bright blue light illuminated from it. It glowed, but it didn’t overshadow the rest of the weapon.

Is that…? For a second, she strongly considered if this was the scepter.

“We were going to let you test it out once we arrived in DC,” Jemma handed it over, almost unwillingly. “Fitz and I started modifying it a couple weeks ago as part of your birthday present, and it’s got some tesseract energy.

“We’re not sure how much power it has, but I want you to be careful Corazon.” She wanted to groan, knowing that Jemma meant serious business when her full name was in use. Giving her a tight hug, a large smile formed at Cora’s lips. Maybe she wouldn’t spoil GoT for Fitz since he did technically help.

“You’re the best,” she said to her best friend, eyes softening in appreciation. Jemma continued by telling her the new features of the improved weapon, a giddy smile on Cora’s lips. It was even retractable, which only caused her smile to grow.

The moment her lesson ended, she went back into action mode and turned to face Daisy.

“What do you know?” She arched her eyebrow while looking at the hacker.

“They’re at Novi Grad, Sokovia,” Daisy began as the screen flickered through videos and photos. “Apparently the Avengers are there, and there’s some kind of fight going on with a robot and a man with red skin. Not too much is being found honestly, but they’ve been circulating and it’s not the first time since…”

Daisy went on, and by this time Cora was only half listening as her eyes were trained on the monitor and studying the situation. It was difficult when footage was scarce at this point. Photos showed some massive robot, a dude she’d never see before flying with a cape. Some of the footage was problematic since they came from news feeds, and they switched from video to anchor a lot.

Coulson announced over the speakers that they were approaching drop off, and Cora made her way to the exit, thanking Fitz and Daisy. Jemma followed close behind the agent, and Cora was close to turning to her friend, telling her to cut it out. However, she noticed Jemma’s hands twitching sillety, and decided it would be better to let it go.

“I know I said this earlier, but be careful,” Jemma said, her voice mixed with worry. “Not just with the weapon, but with all of it, with...”

Whatever I’m doing, Cora finished for her mentally. The Latina fingers tightened around the weapon, and gave Jemma a reassuring smile.

  
xxx

Landing safely, Cora discarded the parachute. She waited two agonizingly long minutes before she finally heard the sound of a helicopter coming from the south. Twirling the naginata between her hands to get used to its new weight, she waited for the helicopter to land. When it arrived, Maria Hill slid the door open as Cora ran towards the helicopter.

“Surprised you’re here,” Cora said the moment she put on the headset and sat in the copilot seat. Hill handed her a tablet with an annoyed look, and each woman strapped themselves in. The ex-deputy director began taking the helicopter in a new direction, beginning to explain the situation. She told Cora about South America, Korea and the new additions.

“Ultron was a Stark and Banner creation,” the woman said, her attention on the sky in front of them.

“For a couple of smart guys, they’re a bunch of pendejos,” Cora said, more to herself, earning a smirk from Hill. The story continued on about how Ultron had accessed leaked files from SHIELD, and currently held Romanoff hostage. Cora’s shoulders tensed and glanced at Hill to make sure she wasn’t lying. She wasn’t. Well shit.

“What about the brunette and the white haired kid?” Cora questioned, pinching the tablet’s screen to zoom into the pixelated photo. She hadn’t seen them on the news.

“They’re former Hydra,” Hill responded. “Wanda and Pietro, they’re on our side now. They’ve come to the realization that what they’ve done is wrong.” The Latina wasn’t able to distinguish them in the photos, but she had an idea as to what they could look like. At least she hoped she could figure it out.

She was a bit apprehensive of their sudden “realization” but she didn’t have time to question it. Reading over their files quickly, she learned their names, abilities, stats. They were twins who were left orphaned at ten. A difficult age to lose any parent, let alone two.

“What about the other guy,” Cora asked when her fingers swiped left and a man with deep red skin, green and red spandex, and a cape showed up.

“Vision, good guy,” Hill stated, agitation clear in her voice. “Another Stark and Banner creation. It has Jarvis’s voice so don’t freak out, it’s too complicated to explain.”

After what felt like an eternity of silence while Cora flipped through the photos, Hill spoke once more.

“The objective is to eliminate Ultron at all costs.”

Cora nodded, less than impressed with both Stark and Banner. Sighing, she continued looking through the photos and the information that was available to her. She felt the weight of her retractable naginata on her lap, and she hoped that it wouldn’t hinder her fights since it was a couple pounds heavier than usual.

In closer proximity to the floating city, she took off the headset and placed in earpiece Hill had handed her.

“Gonzalez is in,” Hill announced, and seconds later, Cora heard Tony’s voice in her right ear.

“Corazon! Glad you could join the fiesta!”

“Not the time Tony, you’re in some deep shit.”

“Barton, she’ll be dropped off near you,” Hill said.

The helicopter landed at the edge of the city, only a few meters from the actual city. Cora opened the door and stepped out, rolled her neck and took a deep breath as she enjoyed the moment of not working for just a second. She faced Hill.

“You know what to do if I die.”

Hill nodded, her lips tightening into a line.

In the far distance, Cora could see Clint and Wanda. She was sure it was Wanda, as red sparks were distinguishable from the scenery. Tony was fighting in the air, but no sign of the Hulk. Captain was probably helping civilians. But the one thing that stood out amongst it all was the plethora of robots that were in the city.

Cora thought that beheading the bastards should be enough, right?

“I’ll be back soon, picking up some old friends,” Cora heard Hill shout before closing the door. She moved at a safe distance from the helicopter, and it flew off.

With a deep breath, she prayed to God she wouldn’t die. 


	3. sokovia

oblivion - m83 & susanne sundfør 

* * *

 

Getting to Barton didn't seem like a difficult talk. In fact, Cora's trek into Novi Grad was just fine until a robot took notice of her. For a split second, she wondered if they mechanical drones were all connected. If one saw her, did all of them see her?

The answer was yes.

Her heart raced as the robots rushed towards her. Cora swung the naginata's blade through four of their necks, and a roundhouse kick dislocated another a fifth robot's head from its body.

It continued until she was finally a few yards away from Barton. Alternating between jogging and fighting towards her destination, Cora had taken out about ten. A large feat considering the lack of chitauri she managed to get rid of during New York.

Incoming already came in, she heard Steve stay. Stark, you worry about bringing the city back down safely. The rest of us have one job. Tear these things apart.

You get hurt, hurt them back. You get killed… walk it off.

Cora silently nodded. The ground shook, and Cora's eyes were trained on the horizon. Buildings tumbled over as the land beneath her feet began to float. She let out a single "holy shit" before getting herself together.

"Coming in south, a hundred feet from you Barton," she said, pulling out her gun and shooting through another robot's head. She put it back in its holster just in time to be slammed into by another one.

Her body hurtled against an empty car, her head slamming on the roof of it. Groaning, she stabbed it from under the robot's chin with her naginata and watched it power off with relish. Glancing at the side mirror, she noted that her stitches had reopened and blood was starting to trickle down her temple.

"For fucks sake!" She kicked the mirror angrily.

Reaching Barton, they both exchanged a brief nod. He smirked at the "Goddammit Stark!" look on her face. Before words could be exchanged, Cora turned and bashed in a robot's head in. She sliced through another's neck, kicking it far from them. A staysifying whack was heard. The end of her naginata smacked through another robot, shutting it off with a turning kick. She smirked, happy with her work.

Turning back to Hawkeye, Cora's eyes happened to land on Wanda, making her realize she'd forgotten the girl entirely.

"Heads up!" Barton yelled. A few robots flew above them, aiming their weapons on the fighters. Cora whipped around took off into an uninhabited building, Barton and Wanda right behind her. The building shook, debris falling on her. Taking a deep breath, she thanked her lucky stars that it didn't cave in on them.

"How- how could I let this happen?"

Cora looked over at the young women on her knees, in the middle of a breakdown with tears welling in her eyes.

"Hey, hey, you okay?" Barton called out over his shoulder to her, positioning himself with his bow and arrow near a hole in the wall.

"This is all our fault," Wanda trembled, hands over her face as she kept herself on the floor. Barton shot an arrow, looking over at Cora pleadingly to help out with the Sokovian. Never one to be a good at pep talks, the Latina sucked it up and crouched down next to Wanda.

"Look at me," Cora ordered, but wasn't sure if Wanda even heard her. "So what if it's your fault. Who cares? What really matters is if you're up for this?"

The Sokovian was silent. Cora grabbed Wanda's chin and directed it to her own. She was sure as hell not going to attempt to give a pep talk and not be looked at.

"Hey! Are you up for this?" Cora looked straight into Wanda's green eyes. "I need to know because there's a city that's fucking flying right now." Cora took a deep breath, noticing Barton shoot another arrow in her peripheral vision.

"Look, I know I just got here, but we're fighting an army of robots. Barton has a bow and arrow and I have this thing," Cora said, raising her naginata to make her point. "But I'm going back out there because it's my job, okay? I have a family that depends on me and Barton and I can't do our job while we babysit."

Unsettled by Wanda's lack of reaction, Cora let go of her face.

"It doesn't matter what you did or what you are, if you go out here, you fight and you fight to kill."

Barton spoke up, both women looking over at him. "Stay in here, you're good and I'll send your brother to come find you."

Cora nodded, agreeing with Barton. After all, if she wanted to babysit she would get on the first flight to Chicago. The whole reason she was doing this was for her family to live in a safe world.

"If you step out that door, you're an Avenger and you're helping the world survive another day," Cora said.

Barton huffed, almost to himself as he loaded his bow with multiple arrows. "Yep, the city is flying," he said, kicking the door open and shooting.

Not one to be left behind, Cora stood and gripped her weapon while making her way towards the door. Glancing at Wanda over her shoulder, she gave her a curt nod. Stepping out, the first robot was to her left, and Cora didn't hesitate to pierce the blade through its head.

"To your right," Cora shouted, watching Hawkeye's arrow hit the target. While they continued, she heard the chatter of the Avenger's through the ear piece, but it was increasingly difficult for her to concentrate while fighting and listening. Leaning against the bumper of an old car, Hawkeye next to her, she couldn't help but feel overwhelmed by the waves of robots that just kept coming.

"Well fuck," she muttered, sighing deeply. Her energy was depleting quicker than usual seeing as she hardly had time to recuperate from the Ukrainian mission. From her peripheral vision, she saw Wanda exit the building with her hands glowing a bright red. Entranced, Cora thought they looked like red fire balls. Barton stood to shoot two arrows, snapping Cora out of her momentary distraction and allowing her to kick the robot closest to her. Wanda had finished the last of them.

"We're all clear here," Barton announced. The Latina looked over at Wanda, who gave an appreciate nod her way.

We are very not clear! Cap said over the earpiece.

"All right, coming to you," Barton responded, signaling to follow him.

A sudden rush of air lew by Cora, making her turn to find the cause. Tightening her hold on her naginata, she readied herself to stab the intruder. It took her a moment to realize that it was Wanda's twin. Tilting her head just a little as she studied him, Cora thought he looked vaguely familiar.

Somewhere other than the photos Hill showed me, she thought.

"Pietro, this is – " Wanda stopped, realizing she didn't know the agent's name.

"Agent Gonzalez," she said, extending her hand to shake both the twin's hands. She shook Wanda's hand first, turning to do the same with Pietro. There was a slight shock when their fingers touched hands, but Cora shook it off as she pulled away. From the corner of her eye, she saw a robot limping on its last leg, literally. Cora positioned herself to strike, and the man's eyes wideneded.

"Cora, no!"

In one swift toss, she pierced through the robot's head. She had thrown the weapon a few inches away from Pietro's arm. The robot fell, now lifeless.

"Did you just yell 'Cora, no'?" She questioned Barton incredulously with hands in the air as she jogged to retrieve her weapon.

"I thought you were going to throw it at the kid," he responded with a shrug.

"You're such a shit, thanks for the vote of confidence," Cora replied sarcastically with a glare. As if she was going to kill a current ally. Retrieving her naginata, Pietro picked up Wanda and looked over at Barton with a smirk.

"Keep up old man!"

He ran off.

"Nobody would know, only you and I," Barton said, both agents jogging towards the same direction the twins had headed. "I'll say, 'the last I saw of him, an Ultron was sitting on him.'"

Cora giggled as Barton continued.

"'Yeah, he'll be missed, that quick little bastard, I miss him already.'"

She heard Natasha's voice through the communication device, glancing at Barton with a small smile. "Glad you're safe uchitel." The only response was Natasha's grunt.

Catching up with Steve and Natasha, she nodded at them in greeting. Cora was informed of Tony's plan, but she had hope. Maria had said she'd be back soon. With the city floating continuing its trajectory upwards, that hope was starting to dwindle.

"There are worse ways to go, where else am I gonna get a view like this?" Natasha said. Cora rolled her eyes.

"Glad you like the view Romanoff," Fury's voice rang through their earpieces. "It's about to get better."

In the distance, Cora saw an old helicarrier approach the flying city. Her heart soared, a large grin spreading on her face.

"Nice, right?" Fury said, "Pulled her out of mothballs with a couple of old friends. She's dusty, but she'll do."

"Fury, you son of a bitch," Steve said.

"I'm sorry, what?" Cora blurted out, eyes wide as she looked at the Cap unbelievingly. It earned her a side eye from Natasha.

"Oh, you kiss your mother with that mouth?" Fury responded.

She heard Freddie disengaging the lifeboats. The garage-like doors of the helicarrier opening as multiple bogies flew towards land. She hadn't noticed Pietro was now near her until he spoke.

"This is SHIELD?"

"This is what SHIELD is supposed to be," Captain responded, while Pietro looked back at him. For a split second, Cora and his eyes locked. She quickly looked away, but it didn't go unnoticed by Natasha.

"He vremya," Natasha sternly said.

"Prasti." Cora's eyebrows furrowed, unsure what the hell Natasha meant, but ignored it for now.

"Let's load them up," Captain commanded. Following orders, Cora made her way towards a group of civilians. She was glad Hill had returned. She heard Rhodey's voice, and her lips couldn't help but crack into another smile. Picking up a baby from a wounded mother, Cora held her arm as she helped around thirty people into a lifeboat. Handing off the child to the man sitting next to the woman, she returned to the next group of people.

"Five is good to go," she said a few groups later, leaning over with her with her hands on her knees. Steve stood next to her. For a split second, Cora felt better about herself when she realized Steve looked as tired as her.

"Avengers, time to work for a living," Tony said.

Looking over at Steve, he extended his hand towards her. Taking her weapon from the floor, Cora grabbed his hand. He swung her onto his back, and started running. She was glad that her job was distracting her from the current situation.

Barely having a chance to capture her surroundings when they arrived, Cora jumped off the Cap's back and sliced through three droid's necks. She ran towards the contraption in the center. Not knowing the name of it was killing her, but it was one of those moments where it was 'fight now, ask questions later.'

"What's the drill?" Natasha asked when she arrived.

"This is the drill, if Ultron gets a hand on the core, we lose," Tony said while pointing to the contraption in the center. Cora could live with calling it the core, way better sounding that 'that contraption.'

For the first time, Cora saw Ultron in person. He flew down from the sky, hovering close to where they all stood. She took a step back, finding the thing a little intimidating. A hand grasped her arm. She looked down at the hand, and then up to its owner. It was Pietro. He let go moments after.

"Is that the best you can do?" Thor screamed. Ultron raised his hands, and thousands of robots seemingly appeared out of nowhere.

"Chinga tu pinche puta madre," Cora muttered to herself in Spanish, emphasizing each word when she saw the hoard of them.

"You had to ask," Cap said sarcastically.

"This is the best I can do," Ultron said smugly. "This is exactly what I wanted, all of you against all of me. How can you possibly hope to stop me?"

"Well, like the old man said," Tony said, "Together."

Having no idea who he was referring to, she still agreed with the sentiment. Despite never considering herself to be part of the Avengers, she was going to fight with them, even if it means death. Besides, there was a good amount of money in her bank account that her family could live off of for the next three years, excluding life insurance.

Hulk screamed, and robots began running towards them. Pointing her weapon to each of them, Cora remembered the button Jemma instructed her to use for emergencies only. This was considered an emergency, right? Pressing the button, Cora's eyes lit up as a beam of blue energy shot through the robots. She hadn't seen Thor's surprised face when it happened.

"This is fucking awesome," she said to herself, pressing it again as it obliterated robots. Cora centered herself between Barton and Natasha, helping them with geting rid of robots. After all, non-super powered agents had to stick together.

Noticing that Barton had finally run out of arrows, she handed him the extra gun. Above her, Vision and Ultron fought. Captain punched through robots. Tony blasted them. Thor used his hammer. Natasha and Barton shot. The Maximoffs did their thing. Hulk smashed.

Moments later, she noticed Vision, Iron Man and Thor all aim at Ultron. And then, the last thing she expected to happen, happened.

"Corazon!" Thor yelled, quickly looking over his shoulder, "Position yourself underneath Vision!"

Wiping off the blood from her head wounds, she abandoned her current position and made her way beneath Vision. She was confused, no doubt, but she was far from questioning the Norse God at the moment.

"Stand your ground, point and shoot!" he commanded.

Taking a stance, she did as told and the blue beam left her naginata and hit Ultron. Thoughts raced through her head, wondering how in the world Thor would react to her possessing some tesseract energy. The robot began to deteriorate in front of her eyes, and Thor yelled for them to stop.

"You know, with the benefit of hindsight – " With a strong uppercut, Hulk punched Ultron that launched him far away. The green giant then screamed at the robots that were left behind.

"They're trying to leave the city," Thor stated, Tony calling out for Rhodey.

Giving her a knowing look, Thor pointed at the weapon as he approached Cora.

"I- well, you see," she began to stutter as she gripped her naginata tighter and took a step back. It was a present and like a petulant child, she wasn't about to hand it to Thor. She wanted to keep it. What if he took it back to Asgard? She couldn't let that happen, Jemma would be devastated.

Giving Natasha a worried look, Cora handed her modified weapon over to Thor with a sigh and crossed her arms. He examined it carefully, and the Latina held her breath as he leaned over next to her ear. Cora saw the Russian visibly tense and ready to take action.

"You did well," Thor whispered for her to hear, handing her the weapon and patting her head lightly as he straightened up. Her shoulders dropped in relief, grimacing as she swatted Thor's freakishly large hand away from her head.

The Avengers huddled into a group to hear Captain's orders.

"We gotta move out," Steve said. "Even I can tell the air is getting thin." He looked from Barton, to Nat and lingered slightly on Cora. "You guys get to the boats, I'll sweep for stragglers. I'll be right behind you."

"What about the core?" Barton asked, pointing at the contraption.

"I'll protect it," Wanda said in a thick Sokovian accent. "It's my job.

Barton nodded.

"Nat, Cora," he said, motioning with his head to follow him out.

Cora stayed for just a second, looking over at Wanda with a steady gaze.

"They believe in you," she said with a reassuring nod, "and so do I."

Wanda cracked a small thank you smile before Cora headed out right behind the Captain. She slid onto the back seat of the car and Barton began to drive.

"You know what I need to do," Barton asked rhetorically, launching into a speech on what he needed to fix in his home. She had never actually met Laura or his kids, but she had accidentally seen a photo of them. Last she knew, Laura was expecting another child. Nat and him continued to talk, Cora looking at the city ruins that they were leaving behind. She just hoped that Tony's plan would work.

"We don't have a lot of time," Barton said, the three agents exiting the car.

"So get your ass on a boat," was Natasha's reply, looking at Cora intently before running off into a different direction.

"You've got to be shitting me," Cora sighed loudly as both her and Barton jogged towards the safety boats. "What the fuck is all that about? Her and Banner? Is that an actual thing?" Cora scowled.

"I don't even ask," Barton responded.

Reaching the lifeboats, Cora took a seat and used the naginata handle to lean her head agaisnt it as she closed her eyes.

Fuck it, she thought herself. I'm going to demand a month off. No, two! I'll go home, get some well deserved family time, and get Estrella that DS she's been begging about for months. I'll even ask Ma to –

"Costel," a women's frantically yelled from the boat, interrupting Cora's thoughts. "We were in the market. Costel!"

She opened her eyes and looked up. Cora saw Barton run from the lifeboat and towards what she assumed was the market. Standing, she was ready to follow him until the Captain stuck his arm out, blocking her attempt to leave.

The sound of bullets going off to her left, Cora saw a plane near towards the direction Barton was heading. Eyes widening, Cora ducked under Steve's arm and ran towards Barton. Her heart pounded agaisnt her chest, running towards Barton and the boy he now held.

She was close.

Just a few more steps...

It all happened so fast.

Her shoulder collided with the group, and the weapon slipped her grasped as she landed next to Barton.

Her face paled, and her stomach dropped.

The sound of bullets were closer.

A string of curses left her mouth in the three languages she knew. Cora closed her eyes the moment she realized she was going to die. This was it.

Her final thoughts were about her family. She recalled her first sale. Her first day of martial arts. Her first tournament trophy. The horrible quinceañera dress she wore to please her mother. She remembered the large cake from that day, how her parents had scrimped for that terrible cake. The day her sisters were born. The time she carried Estrella for the first time. She remembered...

But she never felt impact.

"You didn't see that coming?" A male Sokovian accent rang through her ears.

Her eyes snapped open. Pietro looked from Barton to her right before he fell onto the ground. Scrambling towards the naginata, Cora aimed it straight to the jet and pressed the button. The blue energy impacted with the jet, and it exploded.

It was like she had a blackout for a second. It took her moments to realize that she was on her knees, hands on Pietro's face in attempt to keep him awake. She had a cloth on his wounds, unsure where she had acquired it.

"Cora," she heard Steve's voice, but it sounded distant to her. Like he was miles away. "Cora!" His sounded much closer now, his arms wrapping around her as he pressed her back against his chest to keep her restrained.

"It's- it's my fault," she repeated as she looked at the lifeless body.

_Es mi culpa._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not a big fan author's note before the story begins. I don't know why, but it's just not my thing for me. Thanks to my Beta, TheFlameRose! Comments or PM's are very much appreciated! I'm always nervous about actions scenes, and feel like they're inadequate. Don't ya worry, Pietro will be back... soon-ish. Ooh, I have a tumblr for this story, and all others. The username is vaindaisy,yep. Anybody else see the new CA3 trailer? I AM DYING.
> 
> ~vaindaisy


	4. steve

Cora blinked until her eyes adjusted to the lights of the room. The needles prodding into her arm were uncomfortable, and all she could hear was the faint heartbeat monitor coming from her side.

She regained consciousness slowly.

 _How long have I been out_?

Thinking about all the possible missed FaceTime calls from her family, she panicked. Her heartbeat raced, ripping off the needles form her arms and thinking up excuses to tell her family.

“Cora!”

What would she tell them?

“Cora!”

What did SHIELD tell her family?

“Cora!”

She had to make sure they were- hands grasped her shoulders in an attempt to keep her still. Too worried about her own family, she hadn’t noticed the other person in the room.

“Corazon, stop it!”

A hand slammed against the plastic food table, snapping the agent out of the panicked state.

It was Jemma.

Cora turned to her best friend, and saw her sigh in relief as she let go. The dark circles present underneath her eyes indicated she hadn’t slept in a while.

The agent gathered herself and sighed, leaning her back against the bed.

“You stink,” Cora bluntly said moments after sniffing the air and looking over to her friend. Cora's throat felt like sandpaper from lack of water. Breathing in once more, she groaned. "You and I both."

Laughing, Jemma didn't bother responding to the comment and fetched her bedridden friend a glass of water. Cora was thankful as she drank from it, and happy that Jemma had decided against reattaching the needles.

“Your mum called earlier,” Jemma said, placing the glass on the bedside table, aware of the alarmed state Cora exhibited once more. “Told her you forgot your phone at my place, and would let you know that she called.”

Relieved, Cora couldn’t imagine a life without Jemma.

“What happened?”

The door slid open before Jem could answer. Steve walked in with a bouquet of flowers, and Natasha wasn’t far behind. Cora didn’t fail to realize the pointed look she was given.

“These are for you,” Steve said, handing over the flowers. Her cheeks were flushed, and her self-awareness kicked in, remembering her appearance and her body odor. It was a nice bouquet of assorted flowers, and she could only hope that they overpowered her smell.

Since they were from Steve, she wanted to hold onto them for a bit longer but snatched from Jemma seconds later.

“They’re lovely,” she said with a large smile, heading out the door. “I’ll go find them a vase.”

“Want to tell me what happened to me?”

Never one to beat around the bush, Natasha answered.

“You passed out.”

“Luckily, I was there to make sure you didn’t hit your head,” Steve smiled, and Cora nodded measly with a smile.

According to Steve, she had been out three days. There was a sense of relief, an ‘okay’ that it was _only_ three days. It didn’t compare the two week coma after Kalingrad in 2008.

“What about the Maximoff... did he, uh, did he die?”

“No,” Natasha said. “Bullets missed vital parts of his body, so Dr. Cho was called to create tissue from the cradle for him. He’s in ICU, sister won’t leave his side.”

While there was a sense of relief that she hadn’t died, there an underlying presence of guilt within her. _Guilt_ that had she not tripped...

“Thanks for the flowers, even if Jem ran off with them,” the brunette thanked, laughing politely as she looked at Steve. “You didn’t have to.”

He responded with a bright smile towards her.

“We have to go,” Nat cleared her throat, patting Steve’s shoulder. He nodded, and both Avengers left the room after they said their goodbyes.

There were a lot of things for her to be thankful that day.

* * *

Jemma was stuck to her like _kola loka_ (a Mexican crazy glue that once resulted in her sisters being stuck arm to arm). After being debriefed and discharged, she was allowed to go home. Without her say, the executive decision was that she would be staying at Jemma’s home.

“I heard the Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is supposed to be sort of good,” the British one suggested as they neared city limits. The plan was to marathon a few good movies, and both debated which should be included in the list.

Cora scowled lightly, shaking her head.

“You know I like Helen Mirren over Judi Dench any day.” She leaned her head against the headrest, scowling playfully at the movie suggestion.

“But Maggie Smith _and_ Dev Patel are in the movie,” Jemma refuted, turning the blinker on and turning the car to the right.

Cora didn’t respond, looking out the window. Even if she did like Dev Patel, she wasn’t interested in watching the movie. The premise was ridiculous to her.

Her mind wandered to Wanda, who was stuck inside a cold hospital room by herself. She felt a pang of guilt overcame her as she thought of Pietro too. IF she could kick herself... if she _just_ hadn’t tripped...

Recalling the events of that day didn’t help the guilt, hardly noticing her nails digging into her thigh.

Her forehead smacked against the visor, and a string of Spanish curses let her mouth. Her brown eyes turned to glare at Jemma while rubbing her forehead, but were met with equally glaring eyes.

“What’s wrong?”

“What are you talking about?”

Her eyes looked at their surroundings, calculating for any possible scenario and making up escape routes.

“I called your name seven times,” Jemma said, “I asked you three different questions, you’re digging your nails into your though and it _looks_ like you’ve broken your skin.” Jemma sighed, swatting Cora’s hands from the bare skin.

Nothing serious, but it was definitely bleeding.

Cora didn’t reply, turning to people watch in the sidewalk. A few looked at the two women in the car, most likely judging Jemma’s sense of parking. She claimed it was hard to parallel park.

“Remember that time I almost died by jumping off the bus and you went after me?”

Cora nodded.

“That’s when I knew you were my best friend.”

The sentimental tone made both women smile slightly. Cora bit her lip gently, closed her eyes but kept silent as minutes rolled by.

“Do you remember what you said to me? Well, I’ll tell you anyways because it bears repeating, you said that if I ever needed to talk, day or night, that you would be there for me.

“You know that same goes for me, yeah?”

The agent nodded once more, the right corner of her lips turned upwards in a slight smile. Those were the days when SHIELD still seemed to have their shit together.

“Fine,” the British one said a bit impatiently, shifting the car from park to drive. “Don’t say anything but you’re still staying with me.”

Cora wouldn’t want it any other way.

In Jemma’s apartment, Cora took a seat on the couch without intention of moving anytime soon. There were no complaints from her as Jemma popped in a movie she’d never seen before. It was about some kid who was being turned into a spy, but disguised himself as a tailor.

“So Steve,” Jemma said, a smirk on the her lips as she pointed at the bouquet in the middle of the coffee table. “That was nice of him, huh?”

Cora rolled her eyes at her friend’s attempt to be sly, kicking her thigh lightly with the right foot before comfortably laying both legs on top of her. There was no intention of talking about the man she had been crushing on for years.

“You know, he did come visit while you were out.” Jemma grinned mischievously, pushing off Cora’s legs and headed to the kitchen to refill the empty popcorn bowl.

“No he didn’t,” Cora rolled her eyes, legs crossed as she placed a pillow over her thighs.

“And you were _drooling_ , but he was such a doll about it,” Jemma laughed, shaking her head as she emptied popcorn into the bowl. “He didn’t even mention it.”

Her hands covered her face, groaning in embarrassment at this sudden revelation by Jemma.

“Are you lying?” Cora’s muffled question was asked behind her hands.

The biochemist shook her head with a slight shrug and a knowing smirk, returning to the couch. Cora said her name, hoping to coax the women into telling her the truth.

“Define lying.”

“Did he _really_ come around?”

“He did.”

“And was I _really_ drooling?”

“ _Well_ ,” her best friend elongated the word with smirk still present, crossing her legs once she took a seat. “You _did_ drool... just maybe not in front of him but maybe I did get some good pictures.”

Cora contemplated grabbing a pillow and smacking Jemma straight to the face… but the idea regressed when her eyes landed on the newly filled bowl.

“You’re the worst,” she said, a joking tone in her voice and a smirk. “But this won’t be the last you hear from me.”

“Heard _You’re the Worst_ is a really good show, I’ll add it to our list,” Jemma said offhandedly, both digging into the popcorn bowl in peace.

Cora drifted to sleep from time to time, taking up mostly ten minutes before Jemma would wake her. She was tired from having two intense missions back to back and was attempting to stay up until a reasonable hour before sleeping. If she slept now, she’d be up by midnight.

“Do you think I should get a dog?” Cora mused, watching an emotional reunion in Marley and Me.

Jemma laughed loudly, shaking her head at the sheer idea of her best friend having a pet. “And who do you think is going to take care of it while you’re gone? Certainly not me, and when we’re gone at the same time? Do you expect Fury to skip down your hallway, ready to feed this dog?”

Cora sighed, knowing it was true... but she chuckled.

Fury skipping down a hall had a way of making you laugh.

* * *

Being back on base wasn’t an option a week after her release. Even if she had sworn to take a month off, Cora couldn’t help but feel the need to back in the field, taking bad guys down.

Work was like meth to her. Besides, who else was going to pay for her sister’s college?

During her temporary stay with Jemma, Cora wasn’t allowed to do anything. When she attempted to cook breakfast, Jemma ran in her sleepwear, her hair disarrayed, and yelling “no, no, no” before slapping the spatula from Cora’s hands.

It meant no cooking, no cleaning and definitely not paying for meals when they were ordered in. Her current host had adamantly denied any type of money, leaving Cora the option of hiding a few $20 bills around the home.

There were times where she could confine herself in the couch, devouring trashy TV shows. But she was antsy most of the time, going crazy in the apartment and going on a run on the treadmill.

Jemma was still working, so Core spent most days alone.

Clint texted her a handful of times, mostly pictures of his most recent child… and terrible meme puns.

Steve texted her once as well, but unlike other times she didn’t smile like a buffoon. She hardly noticed it.

She’d receive texts now and again from her own family, brushing off their FaceTime requests, and sticking to texts and phone calls. She wasn’t sure if Jemma had terrible bathroom lighting or if her bruises really had been twice as bad. The biggest was the one above her eyebrow, and would leave a scar behind. She’d have to come up with a good excuse when she saw her parents.

It only added more to the guilt she had for lying to her parents. It also didn’t help the responsibility she felt for putting Pietro in the ICU.

Saturday eventually rolled around. Her temporary roommate was out on a mission and was expected to return in a couple of days. Jemma had almost gone hesitantly, not wanting to leave Cora alone.

Three loud knocks abruptly woke her from her sleep early in the morning. She glanced at the clock, reading _8:15AM_ in bright green. Grabbing the pistol from the bedside table, she stood from the bed. There had been no plans for visitors, and had it been Jemma, she would have unlocked the door.

Silently moving towards the entrance, she looked through the peephole.

She dropped the gun on the kitchen island when she realized who it was, opening the door with a confused smile as she rubbed her eye.

“Steve, what are you doing here?” She asked, and in fear of sounding rude, added: “So early?”

He wore jeans and a light blue baseball t-shirt, a pair of sunglasses were folded against his shirt, and he held a baseball cap between his hands while bending the peak slightly. He had a kind smile on his lips, looking at his surroundings before his blue eyes landed on her.

“Your friend asked me to checkup on you,” he replied, unaware that Cora was swooning at the color of his eyes.

They were just so pretty, and the small speck of green made her like them more…

And then she remembered what she was wearing.

Her cheeks lit up, the idea of burying herself into a hole sounded fantastic right about now. With a messy bun she was sure looked as greasy as it felt, a pair of Jemma’s old sweatpants, and a shirt with a handful of mysterious food stains, she stood in front of Steve.

“Are you okay?” He asked, looking at her attentively.

 _No!_ is what she wanted to yell.

“Y-yeah, I was about to take a shower so I could get ready to leave,” she stuttered a little, lying thorough her teeth while signaling the bathroom over her shoulder. “Do you wanna join?”

His eyes winded at the implication of her words, and hers followed suit when she realized how it might have sounded.

“I-I meant the supermarket,” she rushed her words, ready to dig that aforementioned hole. “I meant, d-do you want to join me at the supermarket? I was planning to make tamales for Jemma, um, it’s the only thing she’ll eat after I told her what menudo has.”

She hadn’t planed on making tamales, but the moment the word slipped through her mouth, she craved thirty. Jemma also did hate menudo.

“Yeah,” Steve nodded, looking much more composed that Cora could bring herself to be. Welcoming him into the apartment, she offered him some water before politely stepping away to get ready.

After a quick shower, Cora brushed her hair into a high ponytail and opted out of makeup. Even if it meant her bruises would be exposed, it didn’t matter. Steve knew her occupation. She dressed in a white shirt, a pair of mom jeans, tennis shoes and grabbed her purse from the bedroom before heading towards the living room.

“I’m ready,” she announced as Steve stood the moment she entered the room. She wasn’t used to manners like that. Grabbing the keys to the car and the apartment, she twirled them in her finger as they exited.

“It’s a bit far,” she informed Steve, closing up and heading down the stairs. It was about a thirty minute drive but in big cities, everything was far.

The distance made Cora nervous since she had to fill up the time with conversation. Steve was nice, but conversing about idle topics when she wasn’t on a mission was difficult, even more when she wanted to cover up her mild case of road rage.

But Steve kept things simple, and if he noticed the road rage, he was kind enough not to say anything. Cora admitted that she was proud of her ability to keep herself together. Even if she did laugh hysterically for a solid three minutes when Steve sat inside Jemma’s mini-cooper.

He was a tall, bulky dude in a _small_ car.

They entered a less pristine looking neighborhood in D.C., where houses were all different bright colors. Some yards were nice and trimmed while others were unkempt and full of weeds. Cora yielded for a group of kids playing soccer in the middle of the street while their parents grilled in the front yard. They looked like they were celebrating a birthday from the decorations and the large pink cake she could see. A group of women sat playing a game, and she would bet every single cent in her name that they played _loteria._

Music blared differently from house to house but it kept the similar style of _corridos_. Steve appeared to be unfazed by the neighborhood, but she could tell it wasn’t one he would frequent.

“How’d you find yourself in SHEILD?” He asked, pulling into the supermarket. It was a large square building, and was painted a awful bright pink color.

“I thought I was going in for a bodyguard job, but turns out I wasn’t,” she responded, recalling the day she was pulled aside by a recruiter. “It was all super secretive so I thought it was for a celebrity.”

She turned off the engine, exiting the car and grabbed the nearest kart to put the items she needed.

“I mean, if you think about it, a celebrity bodyguard that could pass as a bystander? It’s a great idea,” she mused with a small smile. “I wasn’t really into the idea of being part of SHIELD after I found out they’d be monitoring me, but I still enrolled in the academy.”

Being an agent wasn't her dream job, but when she was younger, she couldn’t picture herself in any type of profession. She loved it now, and wouldn’t have it any other way.

“The neighborhood reminds me of home,” she said to him, watching another group of kids playing soccer on an empty dirt lot. She grew up poor. The neighborhood kids were called her cousins, and they all looked after one another.

“I didn’t want to live in a drastically different neighborhood when SHIELD relocated me so I asked them for, uh, a specific area,” she said, pushing the kart towards the entrance.

“Relocated you?” He inquired.

“I was based in Bereza for a couple of years since Russian is my third language,” she said with a shrug, kind of missed the cold winters.

“So that’s why you and Natasha suddenly speak Russian to each other,” Steve said, his tone surprised as if he found out that the sky was blue.

“Among other things,” she shrugged, a slight smirk on her face.

“Other things?” He asked.

“She hasn’t… Natasha didn’t tell you?” She acted stunned, stopping the kart in the empty aisle.

He shook his head, furrowing his eyebrows as he looked down at her curiously.

“We used to date.”

The reaction was priceless as she took it in. His shocked face looked at her in disbelief, grasping the concept as his mouth fell agape. He was attempting to comprehend the new information.

Cora’s lips quirked into a small smirk, but it didn’t last. In just a few seconds, it turned into a large grin until she burst into laughter. She leaned against the orange kart, wiping the tears that were escaping her eyes.

“You-you should’ve se-seen your f-face,” she said between laughter, hoping the kart wouldn’t roll off. “ _Ay dios mio,_ it was so worth it, your face was _priceless_! Why didn’t I take a photo? Nat would’ve loved it!”

Cora fanned herself to try and keep her heated face cool. After a few minutes, she turned to the confused Steve with a genuine grin.

“I’m sorry, couldn’t help myself,” she hiccupped, “I just… I really needed the laugh.”

He only smiled politely, but perplexed.

“What’s the true story then?” Steve asked, watching Cora throw a bag of sixty cornhusks into the kart. They turned to the aisle with the pinto beans, and she grabbed two plastic bags.

“Nat is my S.O. or well, used to be,” she replied calmly. “I randomly call her _uchitel_ which means teacher, and one a rare occasion, she calls me _uchashchiysya,_ which means student.”

Steve nodded, but couldn’t wrap his head around the idea of Natasha being a supervising officer. Especially to someone like Cora. He didn’t know her very well, but on the surface they were different.

They went through the supermarket to pick up a couple other things she needed. Now comfortable with Steve, the idle chat wasn’t as difficult as Cora had initially thought.

“I think this is the most at ease I’ve ever seen you around me,” Steve suddenly said, startling Cora. Her shoulders tensed, keeping her eyes on the bag of _maseca_ she was pretending to read.

“Oh?”

For a second, Steve regretted speaking his observations out loud. Her walls were now up, and her eyes keen on the bag that was now being held tighter. She placed the bag in the kart without glancing at him, and pushed it to the next aisle.

She could feel his stare, making her want to shrink so she could end this conversation. Cora kind of hated herself for her inability to compartmentalize her feelings – and action that Natasha tried to teach her. Key word was _try_.

“You had me thinking you didn’t like me for a while,” Steve said with a small smile, trying to keep the mood light. Her cheeks burned up as she grabbed the shortening and added it to the kart.

Her mind raced, knowing that her every movement was being studied.

It’s what agents did.

It’s what _she_ did.

Cora turned to look at him straight in the eyes.

“Trust me, I’ve never hated you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, well, well, well, well. Did I get that number right, Dwight? *cough* that's a The Office reference. SOOOOOO who saw CA3? I can officially have a team now. I saw it, hooray! Did I cry in the theatre? Yes. Were there more people that I thought there would be on a noon on Friday? Yes. Was I ashamed? Erm, maybe.
> 
> Sorry about the long wait... new job, new training, new life stuff. Boo.


	5. Wanda

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Her original goal was to deliver food to Steve, but winds up being sidetracked when she finds the hospital wing. Cora ends up with a grieving Wanda, and a comatose Pietro.

Wanda

* * *

_i won't let you go by snow patrol_

* * *

**15 May 20XX**

The plastic bag that was full of assorted tamales clung from her index and middle finger, swinging back and forth as she walked down the new SHIELD HQ corridor. After ultimately promising that she wasn't here to work, and was only a visitor to drop food for the Cap, she was allowed in.

It had been a couple of days since her little fieldtrip with Steve. Cora wished she could have called Jemma to talk about it, but she was out for the week on a mission. She didn't want to disturb her.

Dreamboat America hadn't stayed much longer after they finished up shopping. But he made her promise to bring him some tamales once she finished.

In a very Latino household tradition, food was never made in an amount you could eat in one day. So on an early Sunday morning, back at her place, Cora spent it making five-dozen tamales. It was boring without her family, she had no gossip to hear about her _Tia's-prima's_ - _boyfriend's- lover_. But she spent of the time on the phone with her _mamá_ but it wasn't the same.

Cora smiled at the thought of the matriarch. Her mother had chastised her for making all the tamales one kind, so the agent had gone out and bought the ingredients to make tamales out of pork and chicken.

Out of the five-dozen she had made, two dozen were in the swinging bag. Unfamiliar with the new headquarters, Cora had spent the last half hour lost while trying to find Steve.

Sighing in defeat, she leaned against the wall in an empty corridor.

_How the fuck am I going to get out if I'm lost now?_ She thought to herself, annoyed.

The sound of a person scurrying around made her turn her head, making her way towards then in attempt to catch up. A woman was wearing a white lab coat, with a stethoscope hanging from her neck, and her hair was tied up in a tight bun on top of her head. She vaguely recognized her as the doctor that treated her a week prior, but couldn't remember her name.

"Hey, wait!" Cora yelled, turning the corner. Instead of finding the Doctor, she stood outside glass doors. No doctor seen. Cora was quick to assume it was the hospital unit… since she could see swinging doors across the glass ones that read "intensive care unit" in fat red letters.

The Maximoff twins were there.

Cora frowned as the familiar pang of guilt consumed her once more

She told herself to take a step back, but her feet moving forward instead. The glass doors slid open, and when Cora peeked towards the reception area, she was surprised to find it empty.

Who the fuck left their patients, especially agents of _value_ , without proper supervision at the front?

Cora glanced at the ICU door, and saw the unmistakable panel that required a card. Tightening her lips, she inched towards the reception desk and resisted the urge to groan loudly. Some idiot had left their card for the whole world to see.

Nicking the card, the Latina dashed towards the ICU doors before anyone else could come by and stop her, and flashed the card towards the panel.

It let her in seamlessly into the ICU.

Irritated at how _easy_ it had been to access the place, she nearly wanted to turn around and play receptionist to make sure nobody unwanted stopped by. Looking down at the card, she would make sure _Mark Johansson_ would get fired for leaving his post unattended.

She grabbed a nearby clipboard; flipping through the pages and found the room number Pietro was staying in. She hoped Wanda would be there.

_Has SHIELD always been_ this _sloppy with security?_

She placed it back, and passed a few nurses. None of them bothered enough to look up or even stop her to validate her credentials. It made her cringe. Though, maybe it was her own sense of guilt knowing she wasn't technically supposed to be here. It made her wish someone would stop her to call her out.

Standing outside the door, the plastic bag swung a little as her free hand balled up into a fist and her knuckles touched the door. Cora didn't knock, contemplating whether or not she should even be here. Her gut told her no. Her heart said yes.

Sighing, she knocked twice. The clipboard declared Pietro was still in a coma, so she figured he wouldn't be the one answering. And when no one did, she grabbed the handle tightly and opened slightly. In her mental pros and cons list, there were definitely more cons than pros – starting with Wanda's ability to manipulate you into seeing your darkest fears.

Cora wondered how many friendly faces Wanda had actually seen since she arrived though.

Natasha? _Nah,_ Cora scoffed immediately.

Steve? _Maybe_.

The only person she could be sure of was Clint. But with the news of Nathanial being born, she doubted they were frequent visits.

With no friendly faces, and being considered part of Hydra before the battle of Sokovia, Wanda must have felt isolated. The lurch in her stomach reminded her that the most important person in her life was in a coma, and that it had been her fault.

_If I hadn't fucking slipped_ … she thought for the hundredth time that day.

But one question loomed over her. Did Wanda know?

In the end, she sucked it up and pushed her shoulder into the door to open it.

Hell, did Wanda even _remember_ her?

Wanda's bright green eyes were on her. They were bloodshot red with dark bags under them, but they still went wide open at the sudden visitor.

She contemplated closing the door and turning back without a word.

But she couldn't… especially when her brown eyes landed on the silver-haired man on the bed. In her entire espionage career, she had never felt so guilty about putting someone in a hospital bed.

It was irritating the shit out of her.

Forcing herself to look back a Wanda, Cora rubbed her arm with her free hand with a small smile creeping onto her lips. It was one of those smiles were you weren't sure if it was guilt or for an apology.

The room was dull. A typical hospital room that mirrored exactly as hers had been about a week ago. The walls were white but had a gray tint because of the closed curtains. The only lighting provided was the lamp on the nightstand – it had an ugly yellow hue – that was between the bed and the couch Wanda sat in. Across the bed were drawers for clothes – she was sure they were empty – with a microwave and a coffee pot on top.

It felt lifeless to her.

Her heart felt heavy.

"Hi," Cora greeted with the same shaky smile. "I don't know if you remember me but, I'm Agent Cora Gonzalez. Have you eaten yet?"

Wanda didn't respond, leaving the two with an uncomfortable silence for a couple of minutes. Cora was absolutely, undeniably positive Wanda just _knew_ about her slip.

Suddenly, Wanda slowly shook her head.

"I've got food here, if you want some."

Guess the food wasn't for Steve anymore. Cora raised the plastic bag up so Wanda could take a better look, taking a small step towards the couch. She thought about taking a seat, but decided against it.

The Sokovian was ghastly pale, and smelled like she hadn't showered in days.

"They're tamales," Cora explained, taking out a dozen that were wrapped in tinfoil and opening them to show her. "It's like… like a homemade burrito but instead of a taco, it's like bread that has filling and you have to unwrap the leaf from it."

Wanda looked at the agent skeptically. Cora unwrapped a tamale and broke a piece to eat it. Wanda shook her head seconds later.

"I'm not hungry," she said with an empty tone, looking at her brother sullenly.

"When's the last time you ate?"

Cora didn't get a response. It reminded her of the time she had to convince her niece to eat while her sister had to get her gallbladder removed. She would use the same sentence.

"Do you think he'd be happy knowing you aren't eating?" Cora questioned, following Wanda's gaze towards Pietro.

No response.

"I'm gonna go," Cora said, leaving the bag of tamales on the couch. She didn't want to overstep boundaries more. She waved goodbye.

Once she closed the door, she let out a heavy sigh.

Now all she had to do was find Steve and let him know his food was postponed.

* * *

**17 May 20XX**

Growing up, Cora thrived on conflict. She confronted her sister's bully, hanging him off a jungle gym and told him to stop his bullshit. When she heard Gerardo, her former drug supplier, was planning on coaxing Sol to sell drugs to college students, Cora didn't hesitate to point a gun to his head. It's what she did to make sure her sisters didn't live off the streets. Like hell was she going to let her sisters do the same.

The point was, while she had known Wanda for only a few days, Pietro much less, Cora wasn't troubled about sneaking into Dr. Foreskin's office early one morning. In honesty, she couldn't remember his actual name, opting to give him a nickname because of his abnormally large, baldhead that made him look like a dick.

He wasn't her physician, but he was head of the medical unit.

She had full access now to the sector now, much to Foreskin's chagrin. You could only imagine the smirk on her face when she returned the second time that day to find a nurse sitting at the desk. She looked angry, but at least Mark Johansson had been taken care of.

Two bags filled with Mickey D's greasy fries were tightly held by Cora as she made her way towards the Maximoff's room. Opening the door, she invited herself in and raised the bags so Wanda could see them.

"Hey Wanda," she said, forcing her eyes to stay on the brunette and stood near the couch. "I brought you some greasy, but oddly satisfying, food."

The Sokovian kept silent, but she didn't look as underfed as she had a couple days ago. A tiny, genuine smile spread onto Wanda's lips when she noticed a plastic bag filled with ball foils and cornhusks in the bin.

Cora placed the brown bags on the seat, not taking a seat.

"You should try them," she advocated with a smile.

Wanda transfixed her eyes on the bags, looked at the agent carefully and then back to the bag. Her green eyes turned to her brother silently.

The Latina's eyes followed, biting her lip with a frown. Without saying anything else, Cora slipped out and returned home with an itch to cook.

* * *

**18 May 20XX**

She was carrying four round Ziploc containers that were stacked onto each other with plastic spoons on top.

The bowls were filled with various soups Cora had made the night prior. She entered the room, eyes landing on the empty spot Wanda usually sat in. Hearing the distinct sound of the shower turning on, she realized what Wanda was doing.

_Thank God_ , she thought but immediately regretted it.

She placed the soups on the countertop, next to the microwave. While she fiddled with the tops, it wasn't long before her eyes landed on Pietro.

It had been about two weeks since the Battle of Sokovia, and the female's counterpart looked like he wasn't any closer to waking up. Attempting to keep a positive spin on things, Cora reminded herself that at least his health hadn't deteriorated.

Her head titled slightly to the left, studying his face.

Pietro was handsome – she knew that. The scruff on his face was getting longer since no one had obviously bothered to come trim or shave it. But she thought it didn't look too bad. The dark brown of his beard, compared to his silver locks made her momentarily wonder if he dyed it or if it was just part of the by-product of his enhancement. He seemed muscular, but it was hard to tell with the gowns the medical united provided.

She wondered what his eye color was. Were they green like his sisters? Or were they brown? For the life of her, she couldn't remember from their time in Sokovia.

The water shut off, snapping Cora out of her trance and turning back to the counter in attempt to look busy. She looked at anything that wasn't him and a satisfactory smile landed on her lips when her eyes landed on the empty McDonald's bag in the bin.

The door handle jiggled open, and Cora kept her hands and eyes busy with the soup containers. Hopefully, she looked like she had just arrived and that she hadn't been ogling the coma patient…

"Oh hey," Cora greeted an octave higher than usual, arms showcasing the soups dramatically as if she was a model with _The Price Is Right_. "I brought you more food!"

Wanda looked better.

The bags under her eyes weren't sunken, wasn't as pale and she looked somewhat refreshed. The green-eyed woman stared at Cora, towards the food and back to her.

But her eyes still looked dead.

"So I brought different kinds of soup because I wasn't sure what you'd be into," Cora confessed, turning around to point at each container. "This one is the classic chicken noodle soup, this one is _sopa de albondigas,_ which basically means meatball soup but let's be real, that doesn't sound as appetizing unless it's in Spanish.

"But then I realized that I have _no_ idea if you're a vegetarian or not so I made meatless borscht and cabbage soup as well," she finished.

The last two were more Eastern European dishes. She felt that Wanda could use some comfort food. Had one of Cora's close family members been at the hospital, all she'd want to eat was _mole_ *.

Wanda hung her towel on the bathroom door to dry, taking her usual spot on the couch. Accustomed to her silence and being looked like an intruder, Cora stood near the door.

"My apartment," Cora said abruptly, the words slipping out of her mouth without thinking them through. "I've, uh, got an extra bed, you could watch some TV, get your mind off things?"

Nothing.

* * *

 

**22 May 20XX**

Cora had been reinstated to her job a few days ago, and she couldn't be more thrilled. They hadn't placed her in any field missions yet, so most of it was doing some training or basic paperwork - _her favorite_.

Things were still winding down after the battle and loose ends were being tied up. But she was aware of the newer threats arising, especially the group of Mexican nationalists backed by Hydra in the Guatemalan border. She didn't know much about it, and was denied to take the case. But new threats were always rising.

Eventually, she made the time to visit Wanda. She hadn't stopped by since she dropped off the soups. Cora kind of hoped Wanda would take up the offer to stay at least one night in her apartment. The poor girl was sleeping on a small, uncomfortable couch.

Knocking, Cora opened the door. Before looking at the occupants, they landed on the empty bowls first. There was something oddly satisfying knowing that someone ate your food.

"I forgot to bring food today," Cora admitted shamefully, picking up the empty containers and stuffing them in her oversized gym bag. She had to do dishes that evening anyways.

"Why have you been so nice to me? After everything I have caused?"

Wanda looked better than when Cora first stopped by. Her face was less sullen, her cheeks had a hint of pink, and she seemed to be showering regularly from the clean hair. Her eyes were a bit brighter, and not as tired. Cora stopped halfway, startled by the question.

So Wanda didn't know it was her fault Pietro was in that bed.

"I'd hate to be in your position," Cora said, shoving down the real reason down her throat. She couldn't outright say she felt responsible for Pietro's state. Placing the gym bag on the floor, she made her way and took a seat on the couch for the first time. Silence overcame both women and Cora deliberated if she had killed the conversation by sitting.

It was a dumb thought but it lingered.

"My brother, he moved his arm today," Wanda said thick with emotion, observing her Pietro with a smile. "I am confident he will wake up soon."

Cora kept silent, unsure what to say.

"The doctor says he is showing improvement, it is minimal but it is improvement," the twins sighed, looking at Cora with a faint smile. "He is to be moved to a new room tomorrow."

Wanda's eyes were filled with hope.

"Thank you," she said, turning her eyes to her brother after. "You have been kind in bringing me food, and you were right. He would have been greatly upset had he woken up and seen me in a miserable state."

* * *

**26 May 20XX**

There were seven different meal containers being balanced from her arms. Cora cursed at herself, thinking it would be an easy task and regretting not bringing a bag to carry them easily. If Natasha saw her, she'd be less than thrilled knowing that her pupil wasn't able to balance basic containers.

"Oh fuck, oh fuck, fuck," she repeatedly cursed when the stack of meals began to lean a little to right to her liking. Cora was attempting to make it to the new Maximoff room to drop some food off. She was comfortable by the thought that Wanda wouldn't be starving or eating cardboard hospital food.

"I'm going to take these from you," she heard.

It was Steve.

She felt his fingers brush onto hers as he relieved her from some of them, but it didn't last long.

"Thanks," Cora smiled appreciatively at his gestures once they faced each other. She hadn't seen him in a while. He had gone off on a mission the day after Cora had left the tamales with Wanda, and had only recently returned.

"Are these for me?" He teased, looking over at Cora with his ever-cheerful eyes.

Her cheeks felt warm, and she said no. They had conversed once over the phone during his time away, praising her for the tamales and asking for a lesson. She had written it off as only being kind; however, she promised she would teach him after the confession of his cooking abilities not exceeding anywhere past grilled cheese or boiled eggs.

It had made her laugh.

"They're for Wanda actually," She responded, motioning for them to continue walking towards the medical wing.

"That's nice of you," he smiled down, passing the entry doors as Cora shrugged and avoiding his blue eyes. Asking the new receptionist nicely, he gave them directions towards the new room.

"Are you planning on attending Clint's barbeque next Saturday?" Steve asked, this time looking away from Cora. She was planning on going, but was hoping to convince Wanda to join once Clint gave the okay. She was excited to finally met Clint's family since she'd only seen them in pictures.

"Yeah," she smiled brightly, standing outside of the room with the door in the handle. Steve's cheeks were slightly red… and…was Steve going to ask her to go together?

The sudden thought made her body weight shift onto the handle, and it swung open.

"Oh shit."

She lost her balance, fumbling onto the ground and was glad Steve was the one holding the food. A string of curse words in three different languages went through her mind, embarrassed.

"I'm so sorry Wanda, I didn't mean-"

She stopped mid-sentence as her eyes locked onto the bright blue eyes that stared back at her. Her cheeks felt hot, turning into a light shade of red as the embarrassment of it all.

_Siniy_.

Pietro was awake.

She felt meek, awkward under his gaze as Steve held out his hand to help her out. He asked if she was okay, but she busied herself by arranging the meals on the counter.

"I'm fine," she said.

He exchanged pleasantries with the Maximoffs, and exited out to inform the rest of the Avengers about Pietro.

"So," his accent was thick, making her nervous as the shiver down her spine caused her goose bumps, "She is the one that has been feeding you?

Wanda responded with what Cora could only assume was a yes in Sokovian.

Wearing an old college shirt, sweatpants, sneakers, she felt drastically underdressed beneath his gaze. Her hair was tied up into a messy bun since her next stop was supposed to be the gym. She gathered herself up, chastising herself as she reminded that she was _twenty-nine_ and _not_ a twelve-year-old schoolgirl.

But he was hot.

_Very hot_.

Clearing her throat, she turned to the twins with a nervous smile.

"So food's there," she said, rubbing her neck with her hand, looking at Wanda. "I made some potatoes filled pierogies, which I would recommend eating first since I don't want the dough to get gross and because of the sour cream."

Her eyes turned to Pietro.

And she was fucked.

"But, um, h-had I known you would be awake, I would've, um, made some m-more."

He laughed – _what the fuck,_ even his laugh was attractive – earning a slap on the arm from his sister. Cora smiled, relaxing a bit at the typical siblings fighting.

"Right," she gathered, taking a step backwards to the door. "So I'm gonna, um, I'm gonna go find Steve now."

Her back bumped into the door's edge.

_And maybe drown myself_ , she thought, rubbing her back with her hand from the pain.

"Wait!" Wanda pleaded, stopping her. "I was wondering if your offer is still open to stay at your home."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ** moul-eh
> 
> A/N: hi there! i just wanted to make sure there was a distinction between mole and mole, since one's a mammal and the other is a mexican dish. i actually really find it gross, but that's just a person preference. blüg. ICYDK, siniy is russian for blue *shrug*. stop by and say hi if you're able to! :)
> 
> ALSO, all the guest kudos have not gone unnoticed. Y'all, THANK YOU. 
> 
> and if anybody knows sebastian stan's number, forward it to me bc i'd love to date him... k bye.
> 
> ~ vaindaisy


	6. pietro

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi there! sorry it's been three months! thank you so much!
> 
> real by years and years!

  
Roommates were _not_ the ideal situation for her. To reject Wanda’s request, _especially_ since she _had_ already invited her of her own volition, however foolish and impulsive that had been, would just have been a dick move. After a short conversation with a reinstated Fury, everything had been arranged.  
   
That had been a week ago. The Maximoff twins were expected to arrive bright and early Tuesday morning. So when Tuesday rolled around. The agent was up before the sun making sure the apartment was spotless. She was far from a slob, but the extra bedroom she never utilized had been gathering dust over the years.  
   
Her burgeoning nerves didn’t seem to fade, and thought a hot shower would wash it away. But it didn’t work.  
   
In the living room, she looked at the open window. Should she keep it open or closed? After she mulled over the pointless decision, she determined to just leave it when the doorbell rang.  
   
Taking a deep breath, Cora headed to the door and opened it with a nervous smile.  
   
It dropped immediately.  
   
“Nat,” Cora greeted apprehensively, unsure why her mentor was standing outside her door.  
   
Nat graciously waltzed into the bare apartment, looking around before her eyes landed on Cora. The younger woman closed the door, cringing slightly under the observant stare.  
   
“ты не привязывайся,” were the first words that come out of her former supervising officer.  
   
Cora resisted the urge to roll her eyes, biting the inside of her lower lip at what sounded like a command. _As if you never became attached to people_ , Cora deliberated to herself. Barton and family? Steve? Didn’t they count as “attachments”?  
   
“They’re not bad people,” Cora countered, annoyed.  
   
“They were with Hydra,” Nat replied quickly, calmly.  
   
It shut her up, and Natasha gave her a knowing look. The Russian woman wasn’t oblivious to the weaknesses her protégé possessed. Especially when it came to handsome men with blue eyes.  
   
“I should’ve put a stop to your visits when I found out,” Nat spat out uselessly, knowing she couldn't do much now. “You get attached quickly, easily and you know – ”  
   
“You didn’t see me try and stop you from _attempting_ to find Dr. Banner, did I?” Cora scoffed.  
   
The redhead crossed her arms with a glare. A soft spot had been hit. Nat didn’t like being reminded that her attempts to find Banner had been futile. Cora’s shoulders squared, unimpressed and infuriated that Natasha was treating her like some level one agent.  
   
The knock on the door startled both women, and Cora was thankful for the interruption. Glancing back at Natasha, she was gone and the window was shut.  
   
Shaking it off, Cora smiled broadly as she opened the door. The twins stood next to each other with wary smiles, and Agent Gregory accompanied them with a large scowl. He wasn’t happy about playing babysitter.  
   
“Come on in,” she said, moving to the side as the twins walked in and eyed their new surroundings. Each of them carried a single bag, and Cora’s stomach plummeted.  
   
They must have lost a lot, or had next to nothing.  
   
Gregory didn’t say much to Cora, and walked away without a goodbye.  
   
“He was a barrel of laughs on our way here,” Pietro quipped, making Wanda giggle and Cora grin. Greg was often in the stick-up-his-ass routine.  
   
But Pietro’s remark eased her anxiety.  
   
“So this is where I live,” she said, motioning the area. It had the bare necessities, the only rooms that looked lived in were her room, bathroom and as of most recently, the kitchen. The small tour of her place didn’t take long, and they finished up inside the spare bedroom.  
   
The room was big enough to fit two twin-sized beds. The walls were an off-white color, the windows draped with new curtains and the carpet was a gray. Currently, it only situated an old mattress, which was leaned up against one of the walls, and a medium-sized dresser.  
   
“So how are we going to do this?” Cora asked as she looked between the twins. Her eyes didn’t linger too long on Pietro though. “Do you two plan on sharing the room, or would you like to share a room with me, Wanda?”  
   
They looked at each other, exchanging a few words in Sokovian – Wanda said “ew” and punched Pietro in the arm, and Cora immediately made a mental note to learn Sokovian – and then looked back at her.  
   
“He and I will share the room,” Wanda said.  
   
“We’ll have to go shopping for twin beds tomorrow,” Cora said, taking a mental note. “One of you can sleep in the spare mattress and the other can take my bed.”  
   
“No, we couldn’t leave you without a bed,” Wanda remarked.  
   
“Or we could share a bed,” Pietro teased with a smirk.  
   
Cora’s cheeks rapidly reddened, she stiffened and was at a loss of words after the implication. Wanda yelled at him in their native language, punching his arm again.  
   
“I’m sorry about him,” Wanda sighed, rolling her eyes.  
   
“It was only a suggestion,” Pietro mumbled with crossed arms, but his lips still showcased his devilish smirk.  
   
Face still flushed, Cora cleared her throat as she concentrated on looking at Wanda solely. “Y-yeah, n-no, don’t worry about it,” the Latina stammered, biting the inside of her cheek afterwards.  
   
“So Clint invited us for a barbeque at his place, but I if you guys don’t want to go and wish to get settled… or um, you know…”  
   
She crossed her arms. How did having roommates function again? It’d been close to ten years since she had one.  
   
“I’m going to be making a cake, so if you guys want help or something, just let me know.”  
   
Wanda mumbled she was going to shower, but not before giving Pietro a glare to as if to tell him not to overstep his boundaries.  
   
Cora was focused on the items she needed for her cake, attempting to forget Pietro’s comments and Natasha’s unanticipated visit.    
   
“I think you should consider it,” Pietro said, startling Cora from her focus. How was she even an agent if he could sneak up on her?  
   
“Consider what?” She responded, seemingly aloof as she filled a bowl of flour and pre-heated the oven.  
   
“Consider you and I sharing a bed, of course,” he chuckled.  
   
“Uhm, no thank you,” Cora mumbled. She mentally cringed at how nervous her response sounded, turning to open the fridge to grab the items she needed. When she closed it, she hadn’t expected to see him leaning against the fridge, and she almost dropped the eggs in her hand.  
   
He was at least a head taller than her, and while she was no stranger to looking up at people that were over five-foot-six, something about having to look up at him to meet his eyes sent tingles down her spine.  
   
Trying to keep herself busy to look less like a fool, she continued making the cake. She felt like she was being eyed up and down, and she wasn’t sure if it was just her imagination.  
   
Looking at him from the corner of her eye, she scowled when she noticed what he was doing.  
   
“Don’t sit on my counters,” she snapped without thinking. The words tumbled out of her mouth instinctively, her eyes widening, ready to apologize but instead…  
   
“Oh my god, I sound like my mother,” she whispered.  
   
He laughed, not moving from the counter as he shook his head mirthfully and looked at Cora in amusement. A small smile crept onto her lips when he heard him laugh, grabbing the different cans of evaporated milk from the pantry.  
   
He had a cute laugh.  
   
“I’m being serious though, get off,” she stated, looking at him with an annoyed glare and swatting the spatula in the air.  
   
He pushed himself off the counter with a smirk and sat on the on the kitchen island instead as he watched her movements.  
   
Cora bit the inside of her cheek, bucked up and pushed him off her counter.  
   
“That’s not very nice,” he teased, watching her turn to the kitchen aid mixer with flushed cheeks.   
   
“I’m not very nice,” she joked, glancing at him over her shoulder.  
   
He looked at her up and down once more with a smirk, and Cora quickly turned back in embarrassment. She heard him walk away with a chuckle.  
   
Steve had offered to pick her up a few days ago, and wouldn’t take no for an answer. She’d argued with him on principle, even though she wanted more than anything to say yes. _‘Besides_ ,’ he had argued persuasively, ‘ _you don’t know where Clint lives_.’ She conceded the point, even though she easily could have gotten directions from Nat, or even Clint himself. Still, she was rewarded with Steve’s blinding smile when she agreed, and so the arrangements were made.  
   
Despite the small corner of her brain that had been anxiously cataloguing the minutes until she would see Steve again, she still managed to forget all about it after being riled up by Pietro. So Cora was startled a couple hours later when Steve appeared in front of her, clearing his throat to catch her attention while she placed the final touches on the cake.  
   
“Hey!” Cora smiled nervously, while placing the tube of icing down and dusting her hands off on her apron. She was unaware of the twins watching their interaction from the living room. “You’re here early.” She hadn’t even noticed him _knocking_.  
   
Steve laughed, “I’m actually two minutes late.”   
   
“Oh,” she let out, glancing at the oven’s clock. “Give me twenty minutes, and I’ll be right back, promise!”  
   
Cora rushed to her room, muttering a string of Spanish curses while brushing her hair into a high ponytail. She quickly changed into a pair of ankle skinny jeans, a blue and white-striped shirt before spraying some perfume and made her way back to the living room.  
   
“I’m ready to go.”  
   
Wanda giggled, and Steve smiled indulgently.   
   
“You forgot your shoes genius,” Pietro laughed.  
 

* * *

   
Cora was starving by the time all four arrived at Clint’s farm; worse, her stomach had decided to be _obvious_ about it. It grumbled loudly several times throughout the trip and every time it did, she hoped no one would point it out. But Wanda would smirk, Steve would smile kindly and Pietro would chuckle.  
   
Wanda was a changed person.  
   
There was a change with Wanda as a whole, and it hadn’t gotten unnoticed by Cora. Wanda was giddy, and why wouldn’t she? Her brother was out of a coma. The Latina understood. Had her siblings been the same position Pietro had been in, she would have been equally as devastated.  
   
“You must be Cora, I’m so glad to _finally_ meet you! It’s so great to put a face to the name!” She was a short woman, with long brunette hair that passed her chest. A warm smile graced her lips as she greeted the Latina with a tight hug.  
   
“I’ve heard so much from Clint and Nat,” the agent responded while returning the embrace.  
   
“It’s like I already know you,” Laura laughed, moving towards the rest with a promise to talk later.  
   
Cora met the Barton kids. Cooper, the eldest, had been initially timid towards the strangers in his home. Lila greeted each person like an old friend, quickly asking if any of them had super powers.  
   
They were the first group to arrive, and they dissolved into different groups. Clint, Steve and Pietro had gone outside to get things going in the grill. Cora rolled her eyes, deeming it idiotic that they hadn’t even asked if they needed her help. She probably knew more than they did combined since she was Mexican for fuck’s sake. Besides, how much could Pietro help? Were barbeques even popular in Sokovia? What help could he _possibly_ be?  
   
Cora almost followed them out, ready to teach them a thing or two about grilling. But when she saw Nathaniel, she wanted nothing but to carry the child. She never desired kids growing up, and even now, but she did enjoy spending time with them.  
   
“How is he so cute?!” Cora cooed, bouncing the child lightly in her arms while looking at Laura. “Are you sure this is Clint’s kid?”  
   
The Barton matriarch laughed loudly, assuring Cora that it was Clint’s child. When Laura went to check on the men, Cora saw Wanda using her powers in front of the other two Barton kids from the corner of her eye.  
   
The initial instinct made Cora head towards the living room to make sure the young woman wasn’t using it on the children. When she realized she wasn’t, Cora leaned against the doorframe with Nathaniel in her arms, and watched in equal curiosity as Cooper and Lila.  
   
“That’s so cool,” Lila grinned, her brother nodding along in excitement.  
   
It was cool.  
   
Cora could take someone down in less than ten seconds, but there were times where the lack of superpowers made her feel out of place with SHIELD, or the Avengers by that extent. Yes, Tony, Natasha and Clint didn’t have any, but their level of experience made her feel inferior.  
   
While she had no intention of submitting herself to experimentation, she often debated what superpower she’d like to have. She often settled in having powers like Kirby, and even if he were a fictional Nintendo character, it’d be cool to absorb someone’s abilities temporarily.  
   
When Laura returned, she took Nathaniel from Cora’s arms, stating she would be putting the kid to bed. Cora was disappointed.  
   
With Banner’s disappearance, he wasn’t expected to come. Thor was still up in the air, and she bet Clint twenty bucks he wouldn’t show up. Cora was hoping he wouldn't. They hadn’t spoken since Sokovia, and Thor had given some indication he wanted to talk to her about her improved naginata.  
   
Clint was twenty bucks richer half an hour later. Tony, Pepper, Nat, Sam and Thor arrived. Cora had begrudgingly given Clint the money – she was sure he had cheated, but she had no way to prove it. Nat and Cora greeted each other tersely, both upset over the minor confrontation earlier.  
   
The group all took seats outside on the porch, taking in the fresh air. Days like these always made Cora thankful for making it through a mission. Conversations filled the space between all of them. Thor was ecstatic over the food, declaring it delicious and applauded Clint every bite he took. It was delicious, and Clint was so smug over his cooking skills that Laura had to constantly remind him that she had prepped it on her own.  
   
It was almost like home, Cora thought. If you added loud music, and crowded scenery, it was almost like Cora was back in Chicago with her family.  
   
And just like family, it didn’t take long before Tony began to tease her.  
   
“ _Corazon_ ,” Tony rolled his R, making the agent visibly cringe at how weird it sounded from Tony. For a second, she considered teaching a Spanish class for SHIELD agents – at least one for the Avengers.  
   
Well, for Tony.  
   
Tony was the one who needed it. She was sure Pepper would find a way to make him go.  
   
“I hear our very own Captain America brought you here. Is that true?” He asked, pointing at her with the beer’s peak.  
   
Cora’s cheeks immediately heated up, taking a drink from the beer she was nursing. She looked anywhere Tony’s and Steve’s general direction.  
   
“Tony,” Pepper warned.  
   
“What? It’s only a question,” Tony smiled, as if he was posing an innocent inquiry.    
   
“What’s wrong with that?” Steve asked, curious as he looked between Tony and Cora. Her brown eyes snapped towards Sam and Clint, both amused by the situation and Steve’s oblivious nature.  
   
“Nothing,” Cora responded, looking at Tony with a glare. She wanted to punch him, and she had _yet_ to do so after what he caused in Sokovia. But Fury had given her strict orders to not cause any physical or mental harm to any of the Avengers – and while it took much restraint, she planned on following orders.  
   
“No.”  
   
The team looked at Steve, surprised by the single word.  
   
“No, what?” Tony arched his eyebrow, edging Steve to continue.  
   
“I want to know why you always do this to her,” he stated with crossed arms, his eyebrows furrowed as his blue eyes matched up with Tony’s own.  
   
“Well isn’t it obvious? I think she’s made it pretty obvious, right?” The billionaire said, turning to point at the rest of the team with his finger.    
   
“Tony,” Pepper warned with an icy glare. Interactions with CEO had always been minimal, but Cora was suddenly very thankful to have her on her side. She was intimidating when she was angry.  
   
“Huh,” Tony grinned smugly as he ignored Pepper, arms crossed. “I guess the ice has yet to thaw some things out, or are you that slow?” When Steve continued to look confused, Tony shook his head.  
   
“Seriously Corazon, _this_ guy?” He asked, looking at the flustered woman.  
   
“What's your problem?” Steve demanded, taking a step towards Tony.  
   
“Come on guys, this isn’t worth it,” Nat remarked, studying the situation warily. Steve and Tony were inches apart. Sam, Clint and Thor were ready to jump in. Laura sent her kids inside. Pepper’s face was red in frustration, and the Maximoff twins watched the situation unfold in curiosity.  
   
“You’d think after such a long time, someone like you would pick up on social queues,” Tony said with a grin. Pepper scoffed loudly.  
   
“You’re so full of shit Tony,” Steve growled.  
   
Tony’s grin turned into a smirk.  
   
Sam took a step forward to stop them, because while Steve’s cursing was usually amusing to the whole team, there was nothing funny about another confrontation between the two superheroes.  
   
As days went by, Steve found Tony more and more exasperating and was constantly berating him for his lack of responsibility. For Tony, it wasn’t about Steve’s lack of context or social awareness anymore. It was about pride. Neither wanted to be the first to back down.  
   
“It’s because I love you, Steve.”  
   
Cora stood, biting her lip as she looked at the man she had been in love with for a few years. She wouldn’t meet his eyes though.  
   
She was frustrated, annoyed, and most of all, she was humiliated. She cleared her throat after seconds of dead silence.  
   
“I’m going to go now,” she stated, slightly proud that her voice didn’t crack.  
   
Her eyes were swelling but she sucked it up. Crying was for _idiotas_.  
   
Even with the disagreement with Nat earlier, Cora glanced at the Russian. Natasha has no qualms about giving her the keys to the rented car as Cora passed by her. Right now, she was regretting riding with Steve. She felt pairs of eyes following her inside as she collected her things, and on them again when she returned to the porch.  
   
“Laura, thank you so much for having me,” Cora thanked with her voice an octave higher than usual. “I do hope you all enjoy the cake.”  
   
She faced the twins with a tight smile, “And you guys can come with me or ride with one of them.”  
   
Turning on her heel, she hustled to the car while sending a quick SOS message to Jemma. There was a small satisfaction of hearing Pepper yell at Tony, followed by a loud smack.  
   
There was a series of emotions and thoughts that were running through her head. Cora had always prided herself in being strong-willed, but her culture taught her to sit around and wait for a man. It’s not like she actually did, but somewhere deep down, she always wanted Steve to confess some deep-seated feelings for her.  
   
And while she had never intended to keep her feelings in for such a long time, the dream scenario included getting over it and laughing it off years later with him.  
   
She opened the car’s door, only for it to be slammed closed by Steve’s arm, coming out from nowhere over her shoulder.  
   
“I didn’t know,” he began apologetically with red cheeks, arm keeping the door closed. Despite that, she kept trying to open it.  
   
Taking a deep breath, she knew with desperation that she had to nip the conversation in the butt.  
   
“Look, don’t worry about it,” she responded, glancing at him over her shoulder.  
   
From peripheral view, she saw the Avengers attempt to be discreet in their eavesdropping. “How are some of you even spies?” She shouted towards them, hoping Steve would get distracted. It was his team, after all, that was currently disgracing the name of covert operatives everywhere.  
   
“How long?”  
   
It didn’t work.    
   
“How long what?” She said, but her tone wasn’t nearly as unaffected as she needed it to be.  
   
He knew that.  
   
“Four years,” she muttered.  
   
Steve was stunned, face going blank while dropping his arm from the car door. Cora took the opportunity to slip in, surprised to see the Maximoffs already sitting inside.  
   
A silent sigh escaped her lips, packing up and turning the car toward the road before Steve could stop her again.  
   
“I’m craving ice cream, how about you guys?”  
 

* * *

   
Jemma Simmons always carried the spare key to her best friend’s apartment. After receiving a distressing text from Cora, her first instinct was much like the one from post-Sokovia.  
   
Take care of her.  
   
After a tight hug, the biochemist ushered the agent to sit on the couch and turned the TV on for her. Introducing herself to the twins, she grabbed their bags of ice cream and placed them on the kitchen island.  
   
Wanda followed her, offering to help with the ice cream.  
   
“Mind telling me what happened? How was she on the drive here?” Jemma asked quietly, watching her Cora subtly while filling bowls with the cold dessert.     
   
Cora looked out of it, flipping through the channels aimlessly. Jemma knew her too well. Cora would claim she was a soulless, no-good being, but she knew better. Emotions always got the best of her.  
   
When she cared, she went all in.  
   
“Silent,” Wanda replied, telling her what happened in the Barton ranch. Jemma listened intently, topping off Cora’s ice cream with an obscene amount of whipped cream and bananas. Never cherries, since the other was allergic to them.  
   
Carrying the bowl of calories towards the living room, Wanda next to her, Jem wasn’t surprised Cora had found her way to the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. The biochemist detested that show. How could some be housewives without being married?  
   
But she was surprised to see her best friend with a small, genuine smile.  
   
Her eyebrows furrowed at the close proximity between Cora and Pietro. She was explaining the concept of the show to the obviously disinterested Sokovian.  
   
“Why does that one waste so much wine?” He asked in his thick accent.  
   
Jemma handed Cora the bowl, taking a seat in the armchair and looked subtly between the two. Wanda looked equally as curious, aware of her brother’s palpable flirting earlier in the day.  
   
After her mug of ice cream was emptied, Jemma glanced at Cora’s bowl on the table. She had barely touched it, but the British woman took it upon herself to polish it off. She was confused, but relieved at the lack of outburst from Cora. The Latina looked way better than when she had arrived.  
   
Two episodes later, Jemma decided it was time to go. It was close to midnight, and she had to be in the lab early in the morning to continue working with Fitz.  
   
“You let me know if you need anything, alright?” Jemma said for the sixth time as both SHIELD members stood outside the apartment door.  
   
“I will, but I promise I’m okay,” Cora assured her with a smile, leaning back against the door.  
   
“Even if it’s four in the morning, I’ll come by and we can talk,” Jem worriedly repeated. “I’ll even drag Fitz along and let you be mean to him.”  
   
Cora chuckled, finding the idea of Jemma willingly allowing her to be horrible at Fitz funny.  
   
“You know me, sometimes it takes some time before I lose my shit,” she murmured.  
   
“Maybe it’s time to visit your family,” she suggested, knowing how close Cora was to her family. She’d met them a handful of times, but her smile dropped slightly when her best friend shrugged in silence. “Okay, well, I’ll see you later.”  
   
Pushing the subject would get her nowhere.  
   
Still, something had happening between her best friend and the former Hydra operative when she had been in the kitchen, something that had eased the weight from Cora’s shoulders.  
   
Whatever Pietro did… it worked.


	7. the moon and the star

youth - breakage remix by foxes

* * *

note: you may want to have a spanish to english dictionary in hand.

* * *

Ever since she was a child Luna hated mornings. Most days, they started by slamming the snooze button, begging for another ten minutes of sleep. But her four-year-old had other plans.

"Mommy! Mommy! Get up!" Estrella energetically jumped on the bed, shaking her mother by the shoulders.

Luna groaned, pulling the pillow over her head. She wanted _sleep_. With contempt, the nineteen year old sat up, and rubbed her eyes while attempting to tune out her daughter's loudness. It didn't work. Estrella hurled herself across the small bed, and wrapped her arms around her mom's neck with a giggle.

" _Abue_ says to wake you up for breakfast," she grinned, releasing her mother and jumping off the bed before dashing out. For a second, Luna wished she had the energy her daughter had.

She stretched herself with a loud yawn; glad she didn't have to worry about making breakfast this morning. Days like these were when she was thankful for the support her family provided.

" _Buenos días_ ," Marina smiled brightly when Luna tiredly dragged herself in, replying with a grunt.

Marina Gonzalez stood at an average height for a Mexican. The always-cheerful woman had light brown wavy hair that fell right above her shoulders, and because of poliosis, a section of her long bangs were white.

" _Cuantos tacos quieres_?" Marina asked.

"Two," Luna replied, kissing her father's baldhead and taking the seat next to him.

Hector Gonzalez was a portly man with a trimmed gray moustache, thinning dark hair with gray sideburns. He originated from Guadalajara, and like his wife, escaped the dangers of cartels and thee the corrupt government during 1983.

"Hector, put el _pinche celluar_ away!" Marina ordered, swatting her spatula near his hand. Hector shoved it back in his pocket with a grumble and took another bite from his taco. Estrella whined loudly from her chair, telling grandma she wanted to play angry birds.

"We don't use our phones at the table, Estrella," Marina kindly informed her sole granddaughter. The latter only pouted, swinging her feet.

"Where's Sol?" Luna asked, looking around for her twin sister.

"Sol left to school, _dijo que_ she was working on an important project," her father grinned, digging into his breakfast tacos.

Luna rolled her eyes.

Sol always had something to work at in school, even in the middle of summer.

Luna carried a giggling Estrella after breakfast, dressed her up in a cute pink dress with a pair of white sandals, and braided her hair. The mother opted for a modest skirt with a white blouse tucked in, and a pair of flats.

For the past few weeks, Luna had been teaching her daughter how to act around strangers. While Estrella was usually a hyperactive child with some destructive tendencies, Luna had worked hard to secure an interview to Saint Catherine's private school.

They rushed out of the home, walking down Loomis St, reaching the blue line train where they switched from the Clinton stop to the Damen station. Luna grabbed her daughter's hand tightly, not wanting to loose her in the midst of tourists.

The teenage mother took a deep breath, looking at the old building while standing in the front. Sighing, she crouched down at eye level Estrella, a tight smile on her lips, "I want you to be a good girl, okay?"

The four year old nodded, watching her mother with a curious stare. Luna fixed the stray hair in Estrella's face, and gently pulled her inside.

Knocking three times, she was greeted by a pleasantly smiling nun.

"Mrs Gonzalez?"

"Miss," Luna corrected with a smile.

"Come in dear, the Dean is waiting," the nun said. She followed diligently with Estrella in tow.

The first thing you would notice of Dean Gertrude Goldenyates is the unkind aura she possessed, and the similarities between Miss Trunchbull from Matilda. She was a sturdy woman, with a tight bun on the top of her head and wore a all gray pantsuit. Had it not been for intimidating aura, Luna could have _sworn_ the woman was only joking.

"Mrs Gonzalez," she began.

"Miss," Luna corrected again, immediately regretting it when she was given the disapproval look.

"Miss Gonzalez," Goldenyates said, the dissatisfaction outright with the word. "What is your interest in signing up your daughter up this respected institute?"

The mother balked, her memory blank as she tried to scramble for answers. But the one question that flashedin neon letters was 'Would Estrella strive for greatness with a scary lady as a dean?' Despite it, Luna knew it was between a _barrio_ education or a private school, and the dependency of her daughter's future hit her like a truck.

"I, well, I want her to do much better than what I did for myself," was her shaky response.

The love she had for her daughter was endless, and Luna did not regret the life she has led with her. But there were times where she regretted the limitations imposed on herself as a teenage mother. Why go to college if she could get a job and provide right away?

Her twin was a University of Chicago student, majoring in biochemistry, and her oldest sister worked for a congressman in Washington. Her? She worked as a secretary at a small law firm. She liked her job, and was good at it. But more often than not she felt like a disappointment to her parents, who left their country for a better life for their children. There were days Luna couldn't help but feel like a letdown.

"What career will you child strive for?" The dean seemingly sneered, looking at surprisingly calm and well behaved Estrella. The instinct to smack the older woman across the face was Luna's immediate reaction, but she held it back and digressed and bit her tongue. This was her daughter's future.

She took a few seconds to mull it over her answer, but the only answer she could come up was greatness. Luna lied, and said doctor. If Estrella decided to be a sculpture artist that emphasized working with cat feces, then Luna would work double shifts in order to support her daughter.

"Is the father out of the picture?" the vile woman then asked, arched eyebrow with a stare down. Luna shifted in her seat, straightened her shoulders while glancing momentarily at her daughter, who was interested in her hands. Luna returned her gaze back to the dean, and nodded.

The rest of the interview was unpleasant. The woman could not suppress her aversion towards single mothers, asking questions that would allude to Estrella's father. Luna concluded her daughter would not be accepted, and breathed deeply once they were out in the streets.

It had been the same type of snobbery she encountered when she attempted to alleviate her parents from babysitting, and enroll Estrella into daycare. But every place she thought redeemable had the tendency to look down their noses, and decline the applications.

"Mommy, don't be sad," Estrella tugged on mother's arm, a soft smile on her lips.

"I'm not sad sweetheart," Luna lied, picking her up and carrying her on her hip.

"But you're crying mommy."

"It's just sweat Estrella," She laughed through her lie. "Come on, let's go meet grandma so she can take you home."

* * *

Luna was proud of her work ethic, and it helped that she actually enjoyed her job.

But she was a _puta_ , eye-candy, and nothing more.

That's what the other women at the law firm described her as behind her back. Okay so they didn't use the word _puta_ , but that was her translation. She was the secretary for Santiago Manuel Fernandez, a partner in the firm, and he was young.

" _Qué pasó_ Luna?" He asked in his flawless Spanish, making her regret neglecting her Latina roots.

He was handsome.

"Nothing, I'm fine," she replied, sorting through the files.

He was caring.

"Did the Saint Catherine's meeting not go well?"

He was good lawyer.

"She looked at me like a common whore, Santiago," she huffed, slamming the papers on the desk and rubbing her temples.

And he was married.

"I'm sorry." He placed his hand on the lower back of her waist, pulling her into an embrace and planting a kiss on her lips.

* * *

Luna arrived home a little later than her usual, a smile on her lips. Despite starting the day with a negative note, she felt considerably better. Being with Santiago was wrong, and she knew that. He had an estranged wife, but he assured her they were in the middle of a custody battle to divide the assets. She'd never seen the papers before, but he claimed another lawyer was handling it.

"M _ooo_ mmy!" Estrella flung herself at her mother, wrapping her arms around the legs.

"Hi sweetie," she smiled, placing a kiss on her daughter's forehead.

"Auntie Sol is face timing with Aunt Cowa on the phone, come on, come _on_!" she said, dragging her mother to the bedroom.

Her exhausted looking twin greeted her with a nod, handing the phone over with an annoyed look.

"Corazon is being unbearable," she grunted, rolling her eyes as she walked away.

' _I heard that!'_ She heard her oldest sister yell from the phone.

"I wasn't hiding it," Sol retaliated.

Luna chuckled as she sat on the window nook, positioning the phone in front of her to face the eldest Gonzalez. Estrella sat on mother's lap as she started babbling to her aunt about her day. Luna watched in amusement as her sister gave the timely nods, 'okays' and 'that sounds fun.' She was thankful for her, even if she didn't tell her often. Instead of judging her teenage pregnancy, Corazon took time off from her job during her last trimester, and was in the delivery room when Estrella was born.

"I'm gonna go play with toys now," Estrella announced, waving goodbye to her aunt with a huge grin minutes later and ran off. Luna smiled after her, but turned her attention back to her sister.

' _What's wrong_?' Cora inquired.

"What makes you think there's something wrong?"

_'Usually you try to kick her out of the room so we can talk_ ,' she said with a knowing smirk.

"I don't want to talk about it," Luna responded.

Cora rolled her eyes, dramatically sighing, and Luna negated her statement seconds later.

"Can you try to be impartial?"

' _Not when it comes to family, but I can give it a try._ '

"Do you think I'm a slut because I got pregnant?"

' _No, why_?' Cora's interest roused quickly.

"I'm just wondering," Luna muttered, clearing her throat.

' _That's not something you just wonder about_."

"I just, ugh, I feel like I've screwed up Estrella life so many ways _because_ I'm a single mother," Luna vented, waving her free hand aimlessly.

' _Let's get one thing straight, single mother's don't have help from anyone, and you've had help from Ama, Apa, Sol and me… even if you didn't want to tell us who the father is,'_ Corazon was quick to state.

"I mean, because I'm not married, I feel people treat me like a second class citizen," the brunette replied, annoyed and delved into the story of Goldenyates.

' _That's fucked up,_ ' Corazon responded. ' _I think I can get you a meeting at that other private school… what was it? Oh! Morgan Park Academy. I can pull some string, a couple of people owe me a favor_.'

Luna shook her head, a frown marring on her lips, "I would love that but I can't afford it."

Cora laughed.

' _Trust me, don't worry about it, I'll set it up for you_.'

Skeptical, but still trusting her sister, Luna let her do it. She doubted her sister's ability to pull strings from Washington.

Luna watched as her sister pulled on her earlobe, and arched an eyebrow in question. It was her sister's notable action when she was about to reveal something. A few months ago, Cora confessed she had sold weed from time to time.

' _I've got to tell you something but you can't tell anyone yet_ ,' she began, and once she saw Luna's nod, continued. ' _I've got a couple of roommates – not serial killers, before you start to worry! – they recently got jobs at my office, and needed a place to stay_.'

"Is it a long term thing?"

' _That's up in the air_ ,' Cora replied.

"Are they nice?" Her sister nodded. "Okay. Well, hey, when are you coming over? Mom kept blabbering on how much she misses you, so you know that means you're overdue for a visit."

' _Soon_.' Cora vaguely answered, laughing. ' _Even Jem's pushing me to go home for a while_.'

"How's she doing?"

' _She's good_ ,' she replied curtly and Luna nodded. She liked Jemma, and was really the only friend Cora ever brought around.

' _So I have to go start dinner but I'll talk to you later, okay? Give Amá and Apá a hug for me_.'

The goodbye was quick, and didn't even get to act surprised that Corazon was cooking dinner. She laughed, locking the phone and dropped it on Sol's bed before hearing her father loudly announce he was home. Luna heard her daughter scramble for the toys, and making her way to the entrance.

Her sister was right.

She wasn't a single mother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: luna and estrella play such an important roll in this story, that i just had to have an entire chapter on them. it also gives me a break from the whole spy/hero thing.
> 
> sorry this took forever. one of my two betas went MIA so i was/am pretty nervous about putting this up. i am anxious to hear about the peppered spanish in the story. my og script has a lot of spanglish but i had to narrow it down to every other word because it's more believable to those who speak both languages natively. let me know what your thoughts are on it.
> 
> thanks to all my fellow lurker readers! feel free to drop me a message via my ff tumblr! vaindaisy . tumblr


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